Interviewing and Salary Negotiation (Five O'Clock Club)

Rating:
Summary: Like reading an advertisement
Review: I bought this book along with three others that included tips on getting an interview, job offer, and then negotiating salary. This one was wordy and interspersed with advertisements for The Five O'Clock Club. It was also a bit heavy on worksheets and self-assessment tools. I found myself skipping over large sections at a time.

I give the book one star because it does have good tips on salary negotiation, but I think there are other books out there that "have it all," including the salary neg. tips. My personal fave is "60 seconds & You're Hired" by Robin Ryan. I've read it before a few job interviews and have felt prepared and confident. 5 O'clock Club, on the other hand, feels like a big homework assignment I just don't want to face.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent - easily worth the money!
Review: This book was obviously written by someone with good sense and a lot of experience in the subject.

It provides an effective, concise series of steps for getting and surviving interviews, getting offers, and negotiating the perks. Real-world cases demonstrate each of the steps and how to (and not to) execute them.

For job seekers and consultants alike, the author highlights the not-so-obvious fact that job descriptions are usually very flexible. By helping the hiring manager customize the role to fit your strengths and demonstrate your value, you can justify higher pay, yield a job you'll be happier with, and become more valuable than your competitors.

The chapters on salary negotiation are particularly good, especially sections on properly timing the salary negotiation (i.e., after you've shown the hiring manager the value of your particular skills) and handling objections during the process.

This book seems to be part of a series by the Five O'Clock Club. Their title on "Targeting the Job You Want" sounds like it might also be an excellent accompanyment, helping Job Seekers first define the kind of role they should be seeking.

Rating:
Summary: A must-read for a great interview
Review: Whenever I am job hunting or campaigning for a promotion, I grab this book and brush up on my skills. The "Two-Minute Pitch" outlined in part two is the key to having a great interview. Only once have I gone into an interview without flipping through this book first and I really regretted it. A job seeker can probably have a good interview without reading this book, but he or she will have a GREAT interview after reading it.