Thoughts from the Jobhunt

I recently transitioned careers, from management consulting into tech.

One of the things that struck me most about the job-hunting process was:

Why aren't salaries more transparent?

While some companies might post their salary ranges on job postings or ask for your salary requirements earlier on, many won't even quote you a ballpark figure until you've jumped through all the hoops and are almost ready to sign. By this point, both sides will already have invested countless hours, and a fundamental salary mismatch will only result in wasted time for both parties.

It's ridiculous that asking about details such as salary and hours is considered rude during the interview process. After all, employers may like to believe that passion for their company/product is the primary factor in a candidate's desire to work for them, and that said candidate loves their company so much, they would be willing to overlook any salary shortcomings. Realistically, though, compensation is a fundamental part of the decision-making process, and pretending otherwise is just ignoring the elephant in the room.

The issue of transparent salaries extends beyond the interview process to the job itself. Very rarely do companies make promotion decisions, the processes behind them, and the salaries attached to them, transparent. Why not? Wouldn't it be most beneficial for both employees and the company overall if everyone was aware of the standards for success? Cloaking salaries and promotion decisions only encourages corruption, favoring politics and negotiation skills rather than performance on the job. Studies have shown that women, for instance, don't negotiate for raises as aggressively as men (a few articles: here, here, and here). If a higher salary can reflect pushing for a raise rather than heightened performance, what kind of message does that send about your company values?

Making salaries transparent could instead reward exemplary behavior while simultaneously educating and motivating a workforce to take actions that ultimately benefit companies more in the long run.