A Guide to Deflecting the Current Salary Question in an Interview

A Guide to Deflecting the Current Salary Question in an Interview A Guide to Deflecting the Current Salary Question in an Interview A Guide to Deflecting the Current Salary Question in an Interview Interviewing is a challenging process, and the most difficult part for many people is the question of money. Most candidates are inherently uncomfortable with the subject they don't want to come across as greedy or solely money-motivated. It can also be tough to strike the right balance between being open and not disclosing information that could put you at a disadvantage down the line. But those questions do come up: the salary expectations question, the current salary question and possibly more. Would you like some pointers on how to handle this tricky situation? Begin with getting clear on three numbers: your ideal salary, the reasonable salary for the position, and the absolute minimum you will accept. Once you have those three numbers, add your current salary and a rough outline of your salary history over the last few years. Write them all down and don't show that paper to anyone. Sure, the current salary question may come up. However, here is a secret that your hiring manager or recruiter won't tell you: neither one of them has a legitimate need to know your salary history. You are interviewing for a new position at a different company with its own set of budgetary guidelines, and your current salary is not relevant to the decision. [TWEET] Your financial situation is always a private matter. If the employer is not comfortable extending an offer based on your qualifications and fit, so be it. Here are five more tips for addressing the pesky current salary question. 1. The right time to discuss the salary is when the employer is ready to make an offer. Don't get tricked into talking about salary in your first interview. Explain that you will be better equipped to discuss money once you understand the requirements of the job, and how well your qualifications fit the role. Mention that you are prepared to look at the overall package of salary, bonus, and other benefits, and that you understand the industry averages for your region. 2. Try to get the prospective employer to disclose the range first. It is always better to get your hiring manager to talk about the budget for the position before you throw out any numbers of your own. You may need to prompt him or her, and do your research first. You might try something along the lines of, Based on the industry data, positions at this level of responsibility call for X to Y. I am sure you have budgeted for the position with the competitive data in mind. What is your target range? If you don't want to ask for their range up front, consider this: I would appreciate it if you could make an offer based on my experience and qualifications, as well as your budget for this position. We will take it from there. 3. If you have to talk numbers, disclose your target range - not a single number. Any one number can come across as an ultimatum and those don't work well in a negotiation scenario. By giving your prospective employer your range, you are leaving more room for a win-win outcome where your optimal salary range overlaps their budget. After all, everyone is working with limited resources, and you may not fully understand the constraints the hiring manager has. 4. Be sure you are talking to the decision maker. There is another benefit to delaying the money conversation, and that is ensuring that you are negotiating with a decision maker. An HR manager may be a qualified professional in his or her own right, and alienating HR is not a smart long-term decision. However, your prospective manager or his boss has a better understanding of the department budget, your qualifications, and the potential value you stand to deliver to the company. 5. Smile, and remain in conversation. This can be tricky when the current salary question comes up, especially if the negotiation feels confrontational to you under the best of circumstances. Do your best to manage your mental state, don't get defensive, and stay in the conversation. Remember that demands and yes or no positioning does not work as well as open-ended questions and a genuine desire to explore options. You are in this conversation because you trust the employer to look for an optimal solution that works for both of you. If that statement does not feel true, consider the possibility that you are negotiating for the wrong position at the wrong company. Now that we have considered the strategic basics for your overall approach, let's look at some tricky scenarios. What do you do if an online application form requires a salary history? With online applications as a starting point for the hiring process, it might feel like you are at the company's mercy. Skipping the question may get your application rejected, but disclosing your salary history up-front certainly does put your cards on the table too soon. You do have a third option. I suggest putting down your current target salary for every one of the salary fields. Then, use the first available comment box to clarify that all disclosed salary figures reflect your desired target salary. That way, you are not lying, and keeping private information close to the vest until the right time. What do you do if the hiring manager gets aggressive with the current salary question and insists you just give him a number right now? Well, you have a choice to make. You can certainly make a call to simply answer the question. However, don't do it because you were bullied into it! If the hiring manager chooses to play heavy-hitter this early in the relationship, the dynamic won't get more collaborative after you accept the position. I suggest taking a couple of breaths, reminding yourself that you are in control, and using the interviewing process as an indicator of what it will be like to work at this company. What do you do if the salary range is below what you expected? Here, yet again, you have options. Remember that money is one important piece of the puzzle, but certainly not the only one. Look at the position overall does it move you closer to where you see yourself in 5 years? Did you enjoy the hiring manager? What does the overall compensation package look like and does the employer have any ability to budge on the number of vacation days, childcare expense allowance, the possibility of an early performance review and raise? What will your commute be like? Will the employer be flexible about you working from home? It is possible that the big-picture package of this offer comes out close to where you will ultimately be happy and overall well-compensated. That being said, sometimes the answer is that this opportunity does not offer you enough in exchange, and you have to politely thank the prospective employer and turn down the offer. That brings us to our closing point. Remember that you don't have to accept an offer you are not happy with. Sure, you may feel pressured to accept a sure offer in favor of trying to negotiate and risking the possibility that the employer will change his mind and hire someone else. However, accepting what you feel is not a fair offer can lead to resentment and real dissatisfaction with the job. It can become a demotivating factor that affects the quality of your work, the consistency of your effort, and your attitude. So, if you are not feeling excited about the prospect of accepting the offer, it is best to continue your search. Want to see how your resume stacks up? Try out our free critique today! Related Articles:

Science Major Skills List

Science Major Skills List Environmental Studies/Science Major Skills List If you’ve majored in environmental studies or science, your interests may dwell in the realm of ecological conservation, sustainability and more. However, it takes more than an interest in key areas to make you attractive to potential employers.   It’s quite a diverse field with many possibilities for employment, from water quality management and nature conservation to indirectly related jobs like landscape architecture and toxicology. Whichever way your degree takes you, you should possess several of the most important traits listed below to be a quality prospect for employers in search of candidates. How to Use Skills Lists You can use the below skills as you search for jobs. Apply the terms in your resume, in the description of your work history, as well as in your cover letter. Mention a few of the skills on this list, and give examples of how you’ve demonstrated these traits in prior work. You can also use these words in your interview. Hang onto the  top skills listed here, and be prepared with examples of how youve exemplified each. Each job will require different skills and experiences, so make sure you read the job description carefully and focus on the skills listed by the employer. Here is a look a the five most important skills employers look for in environmental majors. Gathering Data Depending on the role you end up with, possibilities for the types of data you gather, and in what sorts of environments you gather them, could differ greatly. Wherever you end up, you’ll be gathering data to find answers to questions, to test the hypothesis, and to evaluate outcomes. Some general skills around data collecting include perseverance, focus, critical thinking, deductive reasoning, logic, and of course, patience. You should be comfortable with various data-gathering methodologies, like the observational method, for example, or a more experimental analysis approach. Beyond gathering data, a good candidate will be able to analyze and communicate complex data facts with their colleagues. So storytelling and the ability to organize your thoughts will be important skills to develop as well. Analysis Skills You should be able to research, problem solve and integrate the principles of chemistry and physics into your environmental analysis. Analyzing the data you gather means being able to discover patterns and correlations. Logical thinking plays into skill with analysis, as logic will help you pull apart a problem, and begin to apply solutions. A good analyst will understand how systems work on macro and micro levels. They’ll be able to identify and begin to solve a host of problems. As an environmental science major, you should be able to not only understand problems and their solutions, but you should also be able to explain problems that are complex as well as simple. One of the more important but underrated skills an environmental science major can have is to be able to organize what they perceive and know in order to share their analysis with others. Conducting Research Employers will seek candidates who are able to conduct research. In order to conduct your research, you’ll need to engage the prior two skills we listed. First, you’ll need to get clear on your strategy and coordinate with others to make sure there are the funds and freedom to do the work you need to do. These tasks require interpersonal skills, communication, and follow through. Once the stage is set, you can begin to experiment, collect data, analyze the results, and record the data. You’ll need to be comfortable with things like formulating hypotheses and coming to various conclusions when you’re able to. Conducting research requires skills like managing stress, organizational oversight, teamwork, time management, deductive reasoning, and more. Organizational Skills To manage projects and phases of projects, employers will seek environmental scientists with proven organizational skills. As an employee, you may need to create research proposal structures, you may be tasked with managing delicate samples, or you may even be placed into a supervisory capacity, which will require you to manage entire projects or groups of people. In environmental science, employers will seek candidates who can organize their thoughts, their ideas, their work, and sometimes, other people. Working Independently While social and communication skills are important for roles related to environmental science, employees might sometimes find themselves working solo. The ability to work independently will be important for just about any employer. It means they’ll be able to dole out assignments or give you direction, but they won’t have to hold your hand through all stages of the process. Employers will look for independent thinkers who can stay focused and motivated without constant oversight. Environmental science can be a lucrative and rewarding career. It can give you the opportunity to devote your life’s work to a cause you may be genuinely passionate about, which is always a plus. Environmental Studies / Science Major Skills AccuracyAnalyzing DataAnalyzing Environmental ProblemsAnalyzing Public Policy Issues Related to the EnvironmentApplying Concepts in Geology to Environmental AssessmentsApplying Dyes and Indicators to CellsApplying Ethical Principles to Environmental AnalysesApplying Knowledge of BiologyAssessing the Impact of Social Institutions on the EnvironmentAttention to DetailCalculus  Collaborating  Collecting Soil SamplesComposing Lab ReportsComprehending Complex Scientific Reading MaterialConducting Quantitative Research Constructing Environmental Impact StatementsCreating Atmospheric ModelsCreating Charts and Graphs to Represent FindingsCritical ThinkingDeductive ReasoningDelivering Constructive CriticismDesigning Research Models to Test Hypotheses Regarding Environmental IssuesEvaluating the Validity of Environmental ResearchFlexibilityGathering DataIdentifying Environmental ProblemsIncorporating Concepts of Physics into Environmental AnalysisIntegrating Principles of Chemistry into Environmental AnalysisLeading Group Discussions Manual DexterityMicrosoft ExcelMicrosoft WordMultitasking  Note TakingObservationalOrganizationalPowerPointPredicting OutcomesPresentation  PrioritizingProblem SolvingProject ManagementReceiving Constructive FeedbackRecording Field ObservationsResilienceSASSPSSStatistics  Stress Management  TeamworkTesting Ground WaterTest TakingTime ManagementUsing Electron MicroscopesUtilizing SpectrometersUtilizing Water Testing EquipmentVerbal CommunicationWorking IndependentlyWriting Policy EssaysWriting Scientific Research Papers

How I saved money for my wedding while buying a house

How I saved money for my wedding while buying a house How I saved money for my wedding while buying a house If you’ve been following me at all in the past year, you know I’ve been going through a lot of changes. I got engaged, I bought a house, and I quit my day job. These are all very financially risky and stressful changes to make, especially all at once! But I also wasn’t willing to give up or substantially delay any of these big changes. I wanted to buy a house before quitting my job so that we weren’t given a hard time by the mortgage lender. I also couldn’t imagine going into 2018 still employed at my day job. And I didn’t want to put off getting married beyond 2018 (I turned 30 last year and suddenly felt like there wasn’t a ton of time to spare).All of these changes are pretty expensive, so we had to be pretty strategic to afford them all. This is especially true when it came to saving for our wedding. Weddings are expensive and we had a specific dream in mind for ours. It ended up being a lot more expensive than I expected, but we made it work and have saved the full amount months ahead of the wedding. Here’s how we did it!I saved over 10% of a windfallIn July 2017, I received a large sum of money as a settlement from the Department of Health and Human Services. In December 2015, I got a routine flu shot at CVS so that I wouldn’t risk giving the flu to my then-newborn nephew over Christmas. Within an hour, my shoulder hurt so badly that I couldn’t lift my arm. I had never gotten the flu shot before, so I figured it was a normal reaction to the shot. Well, I was wrong. I could barely lift my left arm for six months. Dan had to help me get dressed and even take off my jacket. It took over a year, an MRI and CT scan, and many doctors telling me I was crazy, but eventually, I received a settlement from the government for my injury.I immediately put over 10% of that settlement into a savings account earmarked for our future wedding. If you had any doubts about my knack for planning ahead, you should know that we weren’t even engaged yet at t his time. But I put this large sum of money aside and that made it so that we had nearly half of what we would ultimately need for the wedding. I recommend this approach if you ever  receive a windfall  in the future.I saved 20% of my take-home payFor the last four months of my time at my day job, I saved about 20% of my take-home pay for the wedding. That amounted to about $700 a month, so by the time I left the job at the end of December, I had saved $2,100 for the wedding from my paycheck.I think this is one of the best ways to save up a lot of money over time, if you have the money to spare. Set up direct deposit from your paychecks and save a percentage each month. You can do this for any goal, whether it’s building up your emergency savings account or saving up for a trip.We saved our tax refundsSince Dan and I were both fully employed in 2017, we both received tax refunds in April. 2017 was the last year that we could meaningfully write off the interest on our mortgage paym ents and real estate taxes. We also wrote off the start-up costs we incurred for getting our Airbnb up to snuff. These write-offs helped increase our tax refund. We put those refunds directly into our wedding fund.Are you wondering what you should do with your tax refund?  Here’s what I think!I saved all my business incomeFor the first four months of 2018, I saved all of my business profit and put it directly into our wedding savings account. As I’m getting my business off the ground and building profit, Dan and I are living off of his paycheck completely. All of my take-home pay from my business is going directly into savings. The first priority this year was obviously the wedding. By April, we had reached our savings goal for the wedding. Since then, I’ve been putting the money into our home improvement fund.Dan saved his freelance incomeDan is an interactive graphic designer, so he often designs and builds websites (like  mine!). Earlier this year, he built the website for the new DC cidery,  Capitol Cider House. He put that freelance income directly into our savings account (after setting aside 30% for taxes, of course). In the future, we will likely put his freelance income towards our dog fund and our home improvement projects.This article was originally published on MaggieGermano.com.Maggie  Germano  is a feminist and financial coach for women. She helps women improve their relationship with money so they can take control of their financial future. She does this through one-on-one financial coaching, workshops, writing, and speaking engagements. She also founded  Money Circle, which is a safe space for women to talk about money without feeling judged. It’s a way to create community and openness around personal finance. Passionate about many issues affecting women,  Maggie  is a member of the  Women’s Information Network  and was trained as a salary negotiation facilitator by  AAUW.

How to tie up all loose ends on that project youre working on

How to tie up all loose ends on that project you're working on How to tie up all loose ends on that project you're working on Sometimes, it’s just as difficult to start a project as it is to finish it. But it’s not impossible -   here’s how to tie up all the loose ends.Get some help if you need toYou might just learn something new and bolster your confidence in the process.Kevin Daum, an author and entrepreneur, writes in Inc. that you should “call in the troops” when trying to bring a major project to a close quickly.“Sometimes you just can’t do it alone. There is little glory in a solo failure, so swallow that pride and ask for some  help. Sure you might have to  return the favor  someday, but that’s what friends and colleagues are for. It also helps to bring in someone who hasn’t been staring at the project for weeks. They may have ideas on how to complete the project better and faster,” he writes.Break things downThere’s no need to try and focus on everything at once - make things easier on yourself instead.Alice E. M. Underwood, a Grammarly content writer and editorial and resea rch aide at Stanford, writes on the site about how to complete a work assignment when another, more crucial one later crops up and starts competing for your attention.“Block off a chunk of time on your calendar to dedicate to the problem project. Don’t let anyone or anything else take that time away. During that time, ask yourself: what’s the core of the problem you’re trying to solve, and what steps can you take to get to a solution? Write down those steps to break down your project into manageable components,” she writes. “Address the components one at a time, but as you work, keep the overall problem in mind. The separate steps will both organize your work process and ensure an organized final product that directly and accurately addresses the problem at hand.”Don’t be a perfectionistThis often makes things more difficult.Elizabeth Grace Saunders, an author and founder of Real Life E Time Coaching Training, writes on the 99U site about what to do when this gets i n your way.“The mental battle: When you’re convinced that ‘settling’ for anything less than a perfect-quality product is unacceptable, you tend to unconsciously lower your standards in many other areas. This could include missing deadlines, falling behind on other responsibilities and feeling stressed all the time,” she writes. “What to do: Evaluate your overall performance. To clarify the cost of trying to do everything ‘ideally,’ make a list of what else could suffer (sleep, relationships, emotional state?). Then, when you feel tempted to push closure off in the relentless pursuit of perfection, look at this list for a reminder to stop.”

Success lessons from underdogs

Success lessons from underdogs Success lessons from underdogs David and Goliath. Lyft vs. Uber. The Philadelphia Eagles vs. The New England Patriots. If the Super Bowl taught us anything, it’s that the guys with the fanciest jerseys and supermodel wives, don’t always win. Make no mistake about it though, the other guys don’t always win either, but there are lessons to be learned from the underdogs in the equation.They try harderSome years back I worked with a man whose nickname in the workplace was Avis (the fact that I worked in an environment where things felt as secretive as the CIA is a story for another time). He joked that while he was always the #2 guy on the totem pole, he was the one who always tried harder. Avis launched the classic “We try harder,” campaign back in 1962 when they were competing with the top rated rental company, Hertz. Their logic and messaging worked for decades. Some people don’t need the slick or top-rated, some people prefer great service or a personal touch.“They have to work harder, so they know h ow to keep working,” said Rebecca Kiki Weingarten, AKA Coach Kiki, an executive coach and founder of Tradecraft Coaching in NYC. She’s also my sister, and I asked her to weigh in because she specializes in career shifts and transitions, and had mentioned that sometimes the top executives have a harder time shifting gears mid-career than the more average folks.Coach Kiki said, “in business, underdogs have the gift of persistence. Even if they have a great success, they don’t keep hanging onto it or living off of it.” She also explained that by being persistent “you’ve shown that you have a thick skin. Nobody believed in you anyway, so you can come out of left field and own the room.“You have the idea and everyone will tell you that it will never work, but you can also replicate it time and time again until it does.”They have internal motivationMany people mock the current trend of giving kids trophies simply for showing up. Coach Kiki put it into a business perspect ive - the underdog vs. the person who’s used to winning â€" whether or not they deserve it.As for underdogs, “They have the grit and can withstand the frustration. Somebody who gets the trophy just for showing up, won’t know how to react when they don’t get the trophy. They wonder what happened and lose interest.“The underdog isn’t doing it for the trophy. They find internal motivation and they’re going to keep showing up.”They practiceCoach Kiki referenced Philadelphia Eagles tight end Zach Ertz, who had the game-winning touchdown at the Super Bowl, who kept talking about how the team’s greatest strength was the fact that they always practiced. “I mean, each and every day we go out there, we love to practice, and I think that’s the foundation of this team,” said Ertz. As Coach Kiki put it, the takeaway here is that “you have to keep working toward the next success. Someone who’s not an underdog doesn’t know how to deal with adversity as well.”They k eep goingHow do you know when it’s time to quit? “If you have set an idea or parameters or milestones in advance, you’ll know when to give up. It’s a personal decision,” Coach Kiki said.She also stressed that if it’s a philosophical thing or a justice issue, you’ll hopefully keep going. If your motivations are financial, on the other hand: “There are different things you have to believe in. I’m a firm fan of (the Winston Churchill quote) ‘Never ever give up if it’s important and certainly for the greater good.’ ”

How to Create a Great LinkedIn Profile Headline

How to Create a Great LinkedIn Profile Headline How to Create a Great LinkedIn Profile Headline The headline is the first thing a recruiter will see in your LinkedIn profile. It is also one of the main factors that will determine where you show up in  LinkedIn’s search results. If you’re hoping recruiters and other professionals will discover you on LinkedIn then you must  leverage your profile headline. If you’re not sure how to create an effective LinkedIn headline, start with these tips of what not to do. Avoiding these headline mishaps will help you develop an eye-catching profile that gets recruiters’ attention. 1.       Forget to include keywords that relate to your career LinkedIn uses keywords to determine if a candidate profile is of use to recruiters. The most important thing you can do with your profile is to include keywords that reference your professional skills and work experience. If you’re not sure which skills you should include, look up similar professionals and see what keywords they use. A poor headline will have only generic keywords, like college graduate, unemployed professional or job seeker. This is what you don’t want.  Instead, include keywords that relate to your unique skill set, CRM Specialist, Social Media Manager, JavaScript Developer, etc. 2.       Include over-used buzzwords It’s really easy to sound just like every professional on LinkedIn. Just check out LinkedIn’s annual list of the top overused profile buzzwords for some typically overused words. These words appear in too many headlines and profiles and should be avoided at all costs if you want to stand out. Instead, find a clever way to showcase your skills without falling back on “creative team player with good communication skills.” Referencing specific past professional successes can be a great place to start. 3.       Reference your office skills There are professional office skills that everyone is expected to have in 2014: email, Microsoft Office, etc. Don’t list out these skills in your headline. No recruiter is interested in knowing that you have a good working knowledge of Microsoft Word. If you are looking to grab a recruiter’s attention include keywords related to your unique skills that set you apart from the other people who will be applying to the position.  4.       Overstate your seniority or LIE Nothing will get you tossed out of contention for a job like misrepresenting yourself. Everything you include on your resume and professional profiles should be completely truthful and not overstate your background, experience and expertise.   If you want the wrong kind of attention, then be dishonest, because you will get caught and the taken out of the running for the job. To avoid this, make your resume and professional profiles consistent. Also, request recommendations from your colleagues to help validate your claims. 5.       Give an employer no reason to hire you When a potential employer looks at your profile they want to find a reason to hire you. So if you want to get the job, out your accomplishments and what you can offer them. When a potential employer looks at your profile they don’t only want to see a qualified person, they want to see a person that will succeed at their company. You can convey you’re this person in your headline by calling out past successes. Something like “Generated over 1 million in sales in first quarter of working at Company X” works great. By including this type of headline, a recruiter will see a candidate worth calling in for a job interview. Although the LinkedIn headline may seem small and trivial, in truth, it is one of the most important aspects of your profile as it is the first thing recruiters will see and it will decide whether they will consider you further or move onto the next potential hire. Avoid the pitfalls listed above to create a powerful and appealing LinkedIn headline.

5 Recommendations for Employee Satisfaction Surveys

5 Recommendations for Employee Satisfaction Surveys 5 Recommendations for Employee Satisfaction Surveys Employee satisfaction surveys and facilitated focus groups help the employer identify areas of employee satisfaction and dissatisfaction. For accurate, reliable results, employee satisfaction surveys or focus group questions need to be: developed by professionals who understand how to put questions together that obtain unbiased information;administered appropriately with care and consideration for the organizations culture and communication; andanalyzed by people who understand survey research and can provide effective analysis. Further, in the interest of building a relationship of honesty, integrity, and trust, among organization employees, the results should be communicated effectively and acted upon by the organization. Finally, the organizations managers need to track progress and communicate implementation successes and failures. This article does not attempt to provide a comprehensive guide to performing employee satisfaction surveys and leading employee focus groups. It does pinpoint five practices to embrace when conducting employee surveys and focus groups. While Employee Responses Are Confidential, the Data Gathered Will be Used to Improve the Workplace I have mixed emotions about confidential or secret surveys. On the one hand, I want the employees comfortable responding truthfully. On the other, the reason employers do employee satisfaction, or customer satisfaction surveys is to telegraph their openness to employee input. The second is to understand what is on their employees’ minds genuinely. While I recognize that some employers have differing motivations, companies that are employee-oriented, are unlikely to use the information gathered negatively. If you start with an open process, employees will learn that their employer can be trusted to use the information in their best interests. As an external consultant, I always explain to employees that my purpose in talking with them is to share information for the common good. Consequently, my promise about confidentiality is that I will use the information to assist the company to make positive progress. The Questions Asked Really Do Matter No one is as familiar with your company culture as the people who work in the company every day. A small group of employees should determine the topics of the questions to ask. These questions will relate to the perceived likes, dislikes, and challenges your employees might experience in your organization. Once you’ve determined the topics of the questions to ask, develop questions. Your questions should be evaluated to make sure they are not leading to a desired response, vague, or open to interpretation, depending on the employee reading the question. Leading questions or statements are a problem when unqualified individuals develop the survey questions. An example of a leading statement that will also receive a biased answer is: My manager’s door is always open to me. An example of an unclear statement is: My career development and job satisfaction are improved by the performance development planning (PDP) process. Some professional survey firms have developed databases of questions that have been determined to be effective through years of employee or customer satisfaction surveys in different organizations. You might tap into this service even if you don’t want to employ an external company to administer your survey or lead your focus groups. Hold Employee Focus Groups or Survey Processes at Your Work Site If you take employee groups offsite to participate in surveys and focus groups, you are sending a clear message that it is not “safe” to talk about employee satisfaction in the company. It is exactly the opposite of the message that you really want to send. Your message? It is safe to share what you think. The company cares about what you think, and the employer is providing the space and privacy necessary for your participation. Never Lose Control of Your Data While you dont want to know that Mary made that observation, you do want to know that three versus thirty employees made the observation. If you work with a consultant to administer  an employee satisfaction  survey or run employee focus groups, make sure you will have access to the data. This access to the data and analysis will allow you to assess the degree to which various opinions permeate your workforce. The data will allow you to make your own assessment of employee satisfaction. Particularly correlation analysis and other data charts and graphs are important for you to access. I was once asked to analyze the data from an employee diversity survey that superficially appeared to indicate that the  Human Resources department  surveyed had serious diversity appreciation issues. With statistical  analysis, not my specialty, I hired a statistician to professionally analyze the data for me, and we found the opposite. No statistical proof of a lack of diversity appreciation existed upon data analysis. So, maintain access to the data and the analysis. Never Allow Employees to Self-Select for Participation in Surveys and Focus Groups Employees should never self-select to participate in an employee focus group or survey. When you allow self-selection, you’ll generally find that less satisfied or very satisfied employees sign up for the group. Or, your more communicative employees are more comfortable expressing their opinions in a group. Your less communicative staff is guaranteed to be unrepresented. In a recent debrief of a client’s employee focus group process, several  of the more negative findings  were stated in the exact words a disgruntled employee had used to express the exact sentiments to me the week before. How many employees actually feel that way? Well never know for sure. Access to the resultant data and the selection process for participation in the focus groups was controlled by the external consultants. For valid and reliable results, either every employee should be included in the survey process, or a random selection method should be employed to decide who to include. To ensure widespread participation, perhaps offer an incentive, either company-wide or for individuals. Conclusions About Employee Satisfaction Surveys You can use a simple paper and pencil instrument, an online survey, or a much more sophisticated process to assess your employees satisfaction. Ive used everything from a data analysis by the internal IT department of an online, internally produced survey to an outside survey consulting firm with tried and true questions. Some fundamentals for successful, trustworthy employee satisfaction surveys and focus groups exist in each instance. I have reviewed five important factors here. Ignore them, and you may obtain a false understanding of your employees satisfaction. Your results may skew positively or negatively based on the skills of your facilitators or survey producers and the employees who decided to participate. Worst, you may have sent the wrong message to your employees about the safety and worth of communication in your company. Do this at your peril.