Bing, if you really are an executive, then your advice regarding salary discussions is disappointingly wrong. As an executive recruiter, I cannot tell you how infuriating it is to run into people who have never been recruited before who try to play games around the discussion of compensation. Look, we’re recruiting you. We ask the question early in the process to make sure we’re talking to someone who makes 500K (or thinks he’s worth 500K) about a 120K job, not so we can lowball you down the line. If someone starts getting shifty about a straight forward question like compensation, then it raises flags about whether you are shifty in the rest of your dealings in the office (and the type of person our client wants).

In the end, play it straight, but talk about ALL of your compensation, not just base and bonus. I am constantly amazed at the number of people who forget to mention the value options or shares that lay unvested, not mention car allowances and all of the executive perks you know so well, Bing. Laying out your expectations is encouraged, but be realistic – 15 to 20% is a very healthy bump; 30% plus, you’re typically a bit delusional. Be careful about lying about your base and bonus. Smart recruiters and employers will ask you in each of multiple conversations to see if your answer is consistent. We can (and have) requested tax returns to verify your earned income when we think something is amiss.

I don’t need your job enough to produce my tax returns for you when you’re questioning my honesty. If you want to know whether you’re talking to somebody who isn’t already making more than you’re willing to offer, then tell them what the salary range you’re looking at is, If you’re too low, they’ll let you know. The recruited don’t have any desire to waste the time and stress associated with considering a new job any more than you want to waste time considering somebody you can’t afford. Meanwhile, quit trying to get prospective employees to screw themselves out of a negotiating position to save yourself some work. Generally speaking, you only get to negotiate your salary range once. All future salary actions are a function of where you started.

Good comments. I actually never said to lie about your current salary. I never would. People find out. I just think a realistic statement of what you’re looking for is a better stopgap. Anyhow, I bow to wiser heads that mine on this one, especially the part about including ALL your comp when you reply.