Are You Paying Too Much or Too Little?

Last week a colleague asked me what the salary range was for a particular management position. I respectively asked, “What is making you question the position’s salary range now?” She answered, “Because the candidates I’ve interviewed say that the position’s salary is too low for the industry.” After comparing salary ranges with other colleagues in the industry, she realized her Company was actually overpaying for the position. In a similar instance, another colleague stated that he couldn’t believe the quality of candidates he was getting for half of what he would have paid a couple years ago for the same position. He was amazed to find such overqualified candidates.

When was the last time you reviewed your Company’s compensation packages? It’s easy to forget that part of being a good business operator is to understand your market and compensation packages are part of staying competitive. Even if your Company’s salaries aren’t competitive you may be able to make it up on other employee perks. If you’re overpaying, you can demand more qualifications of a candidate or decide to adjust the salary accordingly. The exercise is well worth the research and it’s never too late to know where your Company stands in the job market. So why not start now and take a look at what you’re offering? You might be surprised at what you might find.