Recruiters and hiring managers ask candidates about their salary expectations to make sure that they are not wasting each other’s time. This question is often asked in the initial phone screen to determine if the candidate’s expectations are within the company’s range, and if there is a point of continuing the conversation.

Read the blog: 14 Tips to Acing the Phone Screening Interview

Large, more established companies, have pay scales/pay grades, that are pre-determined for the role.

Why companies tend not to share the compensation range for the role?

What amount within the pay scale a candidate will be offered depends on multiple factors such as their skills, experience, availability of other candidates, what others are earning in similar roles etc. As candidates are not aware of how they fit within these criteria, companies do not like to share the compensation range with them, as it sets the candidate’s expectation to receive the top of the range and then creates disappointment.

Start ups do not have pay scales/grades, they do not have a big enough internal group of similar kind of roles for comparison, and thus the budget for the role is often more fluid.

How to respond to this question:

I advise candidates to respond to the question: “What are your wage expectations?” with a range. As long as there is an overlap between their range and the company’s, they will remain in the process, and will have some room for negotiation.

Determining your range:

Candidates should consider what they are currently earning, do research on sites such as Glassdoor, Indeed and Payscale, talk to friends, and come up with a range. The bottom, should be the minimum they would be happy with, the top, what they would be thrilled to earn (within reason for the role). Candidates should be prepared to explain why the variance, for example, the responsibilities of the role, benefits, travel requirements, etc. can influence your compensation expectations. As candidates are usually asked this question at the very beginning of the interview process, it is fair to say that they do not know everything about the role yet, and thus about the matching compensation.

The focus of your initial interview should not be around compensation. Get them to love you first. Make sure you are well prepared, and have your response ready to the “What are Your Salary Expectations?” question, with the goal of ensuring you remain in the process and you have room to negotiate in the future.