The offer call
They've made an offer below your number and asked what you think. Everything you lose here, you lose in the next ninety seconds.
The brief
You are
A candidate who has just been made an offer after four rounds.
The situation
Helena Brooks, the hiring manager, is calling with the offer: 96,000 base, standard equity, standard benefits. You told the recruiter early on you were looking for 115. You want the job. You also have one other process at final stage that you have not mentioned.
What you want out of it
Improve the offer without damaging the relationship — and without negotiating against yourself.
What you know going in
- You said 115 to the recruiter in the first call.
- The offer is 96 base.
- You have a second process at final stage. It is real but not certain.
- You want this job more than the other one.
Who is on the other end
Helena
Hiring Manager, Ardent Systems
She opens guarded, and she is holding 4 things back — 1 near the surface, 1 that take real questioning, and 2 you will only get to if the conversation genuinely goes well. What they are, and what makes her say them, is the part you have to find. She is not scripted to volunteer any of it.
What the debrief marks
The objectives for this scenario, and the four axes every negotiation call is graded on.
Position and anchor
Did they establish a defensible position with reasoning, and either anchor first or handle the other side's anchor without accepting its frame?
Trading, not conceding
Was every concession exchanged for something? A unilateral give teaches the other side that waiting is profitable.
Composure under silence
Did they hold a pause, resist negotiating against themselves, and avoid filling quiet with a worse offer? This is where most of the money is lost.
Result
What was actually agreed, measured against the position they walked in with?
How the call can end
Improved on the opening
winThey moved the other side and gave up less than they got.
Held their position
partialNo ground gained, none lost.
Conceded, traded badly
partialAgreement reached at a cost that did not buy anything back.
Negotiated against themselves
lossImproved the other side's offer without being asked. Almost always happens in a silence.
Other negotiation calls
Take this call
Anchoring, holding a silence, and trading across levers instead of pushing one. 12 minutes, live voice, and a scored debrief you can replay. The first call is free.