Dr. Arlene Barro  

Excerpt from Dr. Arlene's book, WIN Without Competing!, which she fondly refers to as "The Imprisoned Candidate."



In chapter seven, I demonstrated how to pitch yourself on the telephone, implementing a key strategy in managing the process. I hope that by now you have had a terrific telephone interview and are preparing for the in-person. Depending on the employer, you may have many “visits,” and in every interaction you must Manage the Process consistently, never making any assumptions, including the details of your ompensation package. If you are the Right Fit candidate for the position, you will believe yourself to have magical powers as you Manage the Process the Right Fit Way.

I once placed a physicist, whom I will call David Doran, in a high-level management position. Prior to David’s interview, I carefully instructed him not to discuss salary issues. I always instruct my client-employers similarly, making sure they do not discuss compensation with the candidate or candidates they interview. Sometimes, when my client-employers “love a candidate,” it’s difficult for them to follow my request. But if they want me to capture the Right Fit candidate for them, it’s very important for me to do the “closing,” not them. And to guarantee the best result, I ask candidates to honor my request as well, telling them exactly what to say to prospective employers to help ward off the salary discussion.

I thoroughly enjoy managing the process with both employers and candidates, which includes debriefing them following interviews. When I debriefed David, I heard something that will be engraved in my memory forever. I think of him as “The Imprisoned Candidate.” David is entering stage right. Please enjoy this exciting story in his own words:
 
We were driving through the streets of what was, to me, an unfamiliar city, and with every passing block it increasingly seemed that I was trapped in a scene from Sartre’s No Exit. The driver, a middle-aged woman, was chatting incessantly as she drove us to a restaurant that would serve as the site of my interview. Petunia was the company’s human resources vice president and, because I was captive, she figured she’d buffalo me as we drove.

Mercifully, we’d be dining with others as well, including the head of the search committee, who had interviewed me over the phone a few weeks before. Famous in his own field, and on the way to becoming even more renowned, Carey had apparently chosen the restaurant. Several other people would be there as well, diluting Petunia’s dinnertime repartee.

But for now, Petunia had me trapped in her car, and she was relentlessly talking at me. The conversation finally turned to salary, and how much I was looking for. Arlene Barro had prepared me for this moment, so I was armed with a righteous feeling of immunity from Petunia’s expectation that I should fess up and cough out a figure. Arlene had told me—as she also had told Petunia and others—that I was not to discuss salary.

Click here to read the rest of the story.

Let me know your thoughts about "The Imprisoned Candidate."

Goodbye for now!
Dr. Arlene