Have you felt ho-hum when friends generalize about vacations where the “people were very friendly”…
John Borrowman, CPC
Borrowman Baker, LLC
Gallatin, TN
If you’ve never said it, you’ve heard it from someone else. It sounds like such a reasonable question. You calculate the ‘worth’ of things all the time. Why can’t someone do that for a job?
The question usually pops up when the interview process is far enough along that it’s time to talk about pay. Sometimes the question is used to pivot from “What do I want to be paid?” to “What are you ready to pay?” In any case, it is rooted in a misunderstanding.
First, give up the idea that there is “a job” with a fixed set of functions, to which a value can be ascribed.
Every BV practice has a process of getting an engagement in the door and then out the door (with an invoice!) that moves along a continuum. The more you can do of the work along that continuum, including managing others, the more valuable you are.
Everyone is unique. So the value of “the job” could be higher for you than for someone who doesn’t have the breadth of your experience. Which is why employers can’t pay what the job is worth.
John Borrowman
