I met with an HR person, and they asked about my salary expectations/requirements.

I followed the sage advice of numerous sources that suggest you don’t want to give a number (first).

I replied that I didn’t know enough about the other forms of compensation, i.e., benefits, vacation, stock, so it was difficult for me to answer their question directly. I also said, while I have some idea of what would be expected of me, I am still waiting to talk with other people in the company (my HR meeting was early in the day) to get a better picture of what my responsibilities would be, and so it would be difficult to answer for that reason as well.

The HR person went on to describe the other forms of compensation (benefits, etc.). Then they asked me again for an idea of salary.

I responded that I wasn’t sure of the range of salaries in the company, but that I would expect to be paid at a level that was on par with other employees at the same level (i.e., title), with similar education and experience, etc.

They replied that indeed the company tried for internal equality with regards to salary, but warned that they paid at the lower end of the range relative to other companies in the area.

We’ll see how this goes!

Here are some articles on salary negotiation:

Part of this process involved me giving a 50 minute research seminar. The hiring manager who introduced me said “Many of you in X will be disappointed since Dr. Ronin doesn’t study X!”

I was stunned!

Never before have I been introduced with the preface that I would be bound to disappoint! Thanks for nothing!

I stood up and immediately said (while smiling) “You won’t be disappointed, just entertained with something new.”

In any event, my research seminar went well. Folks asked questions during the seminar and after. And in my followup interviews, they also showed interest and understanding of my research, and noted that it addressed some of the challenges facing Wicked, Inc.

I’ve been watching Wicked, Inc. for some time, and have applied for a position in the past without any luck. It’s one of those places I’ve often thought, it’d be wicked to work there!

And it would!

Anyway, they recently posted several positions, and I applied. So getting called in for an interview is fantastic!

1. The postdoc
• Fired!
2. Quitting my job
• Research integrity part 1
3. Now what? Thoughts on the transition from academia to private industry (Mostly negative and emotional rants!)
• Apologists for the academy
• Sucker punched!
4. The front line. My job search in a new city. (Mostly positive!)
• Job search articles by Dave Jensen
• The problem with trying to wear two career hats, or why you should remove details from your LinkedIn profile
• Tell me your greatest weakness
• “Tell me about yourself”
• Wrong dongle!
• Wicked, Inc.
  • Interview #1
  • Interview #2
  • Thanks for that!
5. When I get a job…
• …I’ll let you know!

http://sciencecareers.sciencemag.org/career_magazine/previous_issues/articles/2010_11_05/caredit.a1000106

that highlights some interesting points about integrity in research. Take note, Big Boss!

Here, I’d like to highlight  points 5 and 6:

5. Ask yourself whether your research environment encourages you to set high standards for responsible behavior.

6. If it doesn’t, take steps to improve the situation or consider moving to a different work environment.

For me, point 5 is just obvious. You either feel it is encouraging or it isn’t. The tough step — when it is discouraging — is point 6. Take steps to improve the situation or consider moving to a different work environment.

My thoughts, although scattered on this blog, are all about point 6.

At some point, I will reveal some of the steps I took to improve the situation. Ultimately, I quit my job (without having a new opportunity), and now that I’ve moved to a new city, I’ve been looking for a new work environment. Eventually, I’ll reveal some of those details.

I prepared some slides –using beamer and not powerpoint (of course) – but I brought the wrong dongle. A dongle is the adaptor that lets you plug your mac into the projector. Why the fuck does Mac use a different fucking dongle for each of their computers?

In any event, my gracious host saved me by providing me with the correct dongle. However, I learned my lesson. Check your dongle before you show your stuff.

http://blog.simplyhired.com/2010/09/answering-the-tell-me-about-yourself-question.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+feedburner%2FqrPI+%28SimplyBlog+-+SimplyNews%29

I agree with the article that this question needs to be prepared for, in advance. You’ll be nervous, so preparation will help deflect that nervousness. Also, it helps you set the tone for the rest of the interview. You can highlight areas/topics/themes that will likely prompt the interviewer to explore. I guess the flip side is: Don’t mention things you want to avoid discussing!

1) Attribute their success within the academy to their ability in an admittedly competitive yet fair race. (Go read “Outliers” by Malcolm Gladwell.)

2) Put the responsibility (and blame) solely on PhD’s for having few career opportunities within the academy.

3) Believe that the hierarchical structure of academia only incidentally uses and exploits the efforts of the lowest tiers, to the benefit of the highest tiers. They deny that such a situation has arisen by design or that its perpetuation is intentional (There is no such thing as an accidental ponzi scheme).

Fuck you, academia*.

* More specifically, the professors (“mentors”) that exploited my efforts, my brain, my lab hands, my training and management of junior researchers, my analytical ability, and my writing (and publishing) and provided me with absolutely no real world training, experience or “alternative career” (this is bullshit, but that’s another post) networking opportunities.

Once I was interviewing a student for a field/lab tech job. After asking her about her strengths, I asked her to tell me her greatest weakness.

She replied, “I’m paranoid. I often think people are watching me.”

This was awesome. Waaaay better then “Well, let me think a moment. … I guess one of my weaknesses is that I work too hard. I spend too much time in the lab and need to get some balance going with other important parts of my life.”

I hired her.