Money…they say it’s what makes the world go ’round. I am not sure about that, but it can determine your fate in getting a position you want. Most people do not like dealing with salary requirements and negotiation. It seems to have become a game between job candidates and companies. I have received questions as of late in terms of a salary negotiation strategy and thought I should share my opinions to help you in your negotiation efforts.

Companies typically handle the initial discussion of salary in one of two ways: the company will provide you with the position salary range or the company will ask what you desire in terms of salary. It is always a gamble when pitching a desired salary to a company. Some companies are very in-tune to market salaries and skill-worth while other companies think it perfectly acceptable to pay a very low salary for a very valuable job. A good company should engage in negotiation, but some companies simply remove a candidate from the applicant pool if the salary request is too far out of range.

The key to successful salary negotiations is to first, DO YOUR HOMEWORK. Research salaries for the specific type of position for which you are applying. When matching positions on those sites, try to match the position and your skill set as close as possible. The second key is to KNOW YOUR WORTH. You know your education level, experience, and so forth. Know what your skill set is worth and be prepared to defend that worth in a salary negotiation. The final key to salary negotiation is to KNOW WHAT YOU WANT. If you have your heart set on a specific geographic location with minimal opportunities, the company may be in a position to offer lower wages. If this geographic location is really where you want to be, you might have to accept a salary that is not exactly what you want. If you are focused on a particular career path, it may require you to start low. You need to be educated and realistic in approaching your salary negotiation. Do your homework…know your worth…and know what you really want.

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Forward Podcast 21 aims to give advice to young PR professionals in their first PR agency jobs (interns, AAE’s, AE’s) to help them get ahead.

Paull Young asks two of Canada’s leading PR bloggers and podcasters, David Jones and Ed Lee, to share some thoughts from their lengthy experience in PR agencies.

David Jones is a Senior Vice President at Fleishman Hillard, Toronto, and one half of the excellent Inside PR podcast. Ed Lee is a senior consultant at iStudio and the author of Blogging Me, Blogging You. Between the two of them they have 19 years of experience in PR agencies.

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Listen Now:

 Forward Podcast #21 - Advice for your first job in a PR agency [15:41m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (1655)

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Many people are in their first few weeks of their internship right now, so I thought it appropriate to pass along a few tips to help you make the most out of your summer in PR.

As always, your thoughts are appreciated, so feel free to add to this list!

Anticipate: Think ahead.  It depends on what area of PR you’re interning in, but you’ll probably be analyzing press coverage at some point.  Look critically at the issues your clients are facing and anticipate questions they’d ask if they were looking over your shoulder.  Also, think about what problems your client is trying to solve.  Anticipate media coverage, too.  Take a look at an emerging issue and try to predict how it will be perceived in the media.  This will help you create better analyses, press releases, etc.

Take the good with the bad: There will be fantastic, interesting things that you will do over the course of a summer. However, sometimes interns have to do stupid things - there’s no escaping it.  I had to sift through five newspapers every morning for an entire summer and literally cut out “clips” for my boss.  I also got to go to a private party with a client on top of the Sears Tower that same summer, so roll with the bad tasks and enjoy the good ones to the fullest.  Realize that even the most mundane tasks need to be done for a reason, and that everything you do, no matter how small, fits into the bigger picture.  So, take pride in doing even the smallest things, 100 percent - it will pay off.

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Here’s an article from the New York Times by Anna Bahney that really boils my blood and has already generated a little buzz in the blogosphere. It’s not the article that angers me, I love the article. It’s the chowderhead subjects.

People have been stupid for years, so there’s nothing new there. What is new is the lightning fast way in which you can prove your stupidity to hundreds or thousands of people within seconds. And do so in a way that might never go away, bonus! Yes, the Internet is the recorded, megaphoned soapbox that morons around the world can now utlize for the embarrassment of us all.

I’m being harsh, but truthful.

Trevor Cook points it out, Denise Howell has an interesting take on it, and Slashdot weighed in for example. There’s not a lot of discussion about it, just traffic. The article pretty much says it all. It’s humorous, to the point, and pertinent. The most quoted part in blog postings I’ve seen from the article is this:

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Note from the editor: We are currently looking into creating an area of Forward specifically for the posting of jobs/internships, but in the meantime, I decided to go ahead and publish this contributed post to the blog since the deadline for application is May 19. (Note: Forward is not endorsing this opportunity. I am simply passing along information that may be beneficial to our readers.) If you are interested in Forward developing a section for job opportunities, or have any thoughts on that, I’d love for you to email me at erin(at)forward-moving.com.
– Erin Caldwell, Managing Editor

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It’s that time of the year again — the time when a new generation of college graduates don their caps and gowns and ask the question ‘Now what?’

I was in that position three years ago today, and I still find it hard to believe that since then I have interviewed a former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; flown on a leer jet with a special assistant to the Secretary of the Army, serving as a public relations advisor; and dealt with media on front-page, above-the-fold stories that have been in the forefront of national conversation.

The best part is, I got to do all of this as part of a training program.

If you are college graduate and are looking for a way to apply what you have learned in the classroom as well as learn the real-life tactics and techniques of public relations in a high-profile setting, I would recommend the program I went through — the U.S. Army Public Affairs Internship Program, which is accepting applications through May 19.

As a regular reader of Forward, I have noticed a lot of discussion about career opportunities for public relations graduates at PR firms. However, public communication is just as important — if not more — for government agencies as it is for corporate clients. Democracy depends on openness and transparency, and the government needs young, savvy PR experts to help communicate with the public.

One upfront: I should tell you that the label of “internship” for the program is a bit of a misnomer. It is more of an apprenticeship. Interns are hired on as federal government employees from day one, which means you get (a) a salary, (b) health insurance, (c) holidays, vacation and all the other perks of federal employment. Also as an upfront, this is not a recruiting tool. Interns are civilian employees and do not take on an enlistment requirement.

The program is run in three phases, each of which is designed to help young PR professionals learn the art and science of public affairs.

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Lately, I’ve been noticing something that sends up my little “Forward topic” flag. I’ve read where several students have blogged about, or mentioned in the context of a comment, their experiences in the job/intern search. They mention specifics — the name of the company/organization, how the interview went, what they expect their responsibilities to be if hired — all in a very chatty, blog-like tone. Reading those remarks, however, brings to mind an issue many students probably have to deal with, especially if they blog: How open should you be about your job search?

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A very popular question by PR seniors is “Should I go to graduate school immediately after I get my undergraduate degree?” Well, maybe there is no definite answer. But Michael Morton brings up some interesting points.

I completely agree with Michael about experience being very important. But is it the most important thing? I personally don’t know what the most important thing is, but does anyone? Doesn’t it depend on the employer to decide what the most important attribute is for the specific job? I would think so. But at the same time, without experience, you probably won’t even get looked at for the job. So maybe it is the most important.

I also agree that you don’t learn everything you need to know about the field from your internships. However, that isn’t the point of an internship. As I see it, the point of an internship is to get your feet wet; especially the formal internship. It is about gaining experience, not about becoming a master. So I pose this question: why do you have to be a master before you get your master’s (degree)?

I think it would be a tremendous plus to be able to directly apply what you learn in grad school to your company. I also think it would help you remember the information better because you use it immediately. Am I saying I won’t remember the information if I don’t have something to apply it to immediately? Not necessarily. But it certainly gives the lessons another dimension.

I think the real question in the student’s mind is “Do I have to get a full-time job before I start graduate school to be successful?” I say no. I am confident that there are people out there that went immediately to grad school and are successful today. There is no doubt in my mind. But would it have been easier for them if they had a full-time job first? You’ll have to ask them.

Everyone knows what Michael and I think. We’d like your perspective.

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