Hi Danny,

I have a candidate being asked back for a high level partner job at a big law firm Thursday. After extensive interviews, he was passed over six weeks ago, but the guy they offered the job to just finally turned it down. Now they want to talk to my guy again. He very much wants the job. It’s a much better firm than the one he’s at. They asked for extensive confidential information about his client list and portable business. He gave it to them. They also asked him what his compensation is. This he does not want to give them. At least not today and probably not tomorrow. I’m afraid that if he doesn’t tell them how much he’s making, they will say screw this guy, he’s uncooperative, wouldn’t make a good partner, we’ll go to Candidate #3. He thinks it’s a test of his negotiating skills. What do I do? Thanks!

My Response:

I would be the first to admit that there are times in the process when a company is testing your negotiating skills. Especially when considering someone for partnership.

THIS ISN’T ONE OF THEM…You are making a fatal error in judgment that in all likelihood will cause them to withdraw.

In my business, there are two “sacred cows” of verification that ALL companies adhere to before making offers. 1) References. 2) Compensation. When a candidate, for whatever rationalized reason, will not give references or compensation, the assumption (which by the way turns out to be true the vast majority of the time) is that the candidate has something to hide. If you do not provide current compensation, they will assume you are exaggerating the actual number in order to leverage a higher salary than warranted. For your information, it is Standard Operating Procedure for most corporations to ask for a W2 to verify income. They are not doing that, they are only asking for you to give them an honest answer. As a lawyer who is trained in the discovery and deposition process, I’m surprised you don’t see how important this information is when a company takes on hiring any individual, let alone a partner. In my business, refusing to give compensation is a red flag, and you need to know you are, in effect, backing out of the process. But of course I’ll tell them whatever you decide. What are your thoughts?

This is okay in email if you can’t get him live. I’d hold the line on this.