Each swap was a possibility to land a greater function and higher pay, the Bay Space-based engineer mentioned.
“I’ve hopped fairly a bit. I optimized for cash and profession progress,” he instructed Enterprise Insider.
He shared his compensation journey since graduating from college in 2017. His profession path has introduced him to Tesla, SAP, Salesforce, and his present function at Meta.
Tesla
Pandey joined Tesla in February 2018 after his grasp’s in pc science. He received a typical new graduate provide for software program engineers.
He was supplied $150,000 a yr for a base wage, restricted inventory models, and an annual bonus. He negotiated his sign-on bonus from $8,000 to $12,000.
5 months after beginning, he was laid off with 4,000 different staff.
Since he wanted a piece visa to remain within the US, he had about three months to discover a new function. He started making use of and landed a job at SAP on the finish of July, seven weeks after he began trying.
SAP
Pandey joined the corporate in September in a brand new graduate function, like at Tesla.
“I had no competing presents so I didn’t have a lot leverage,” he mentioned. “However I negotiated base by 6% and signal on by 20%.”
It added as much as $165,000 yearly, plus a $12,000 sign-on bonus. Pandey spent the remainder of the yr at SAP and acquired an annual performance-related appraisal of 5%, which introduced his compensation to $173,250.
Associates spoke extremely of Salesforce’s firm tradition, and he thought he could be higher compensated there. After slightly over a yr at SAP, he determined to use for a job.
Salesforce
He moved to Salesforce, becoming a member of in a barely extra senior software program function from his final function at SAP.
Salesforce supplied Pandey a 30% improve on his whole compensation, bringing the bundle to about $190,000.
His base wage was about $150,000, shares would quantity to $17,500 per yr, and his annual bonus was $15,000.
Earlier than accepting the provide, he negotiated with Salesforce. That netted him a $10,000 sign-on bonus — the corporate hadn’t supplied one initially.
“I all the time ensure to barter as a result of there’s all the time room from once they provide the preliminary provide,” he mentioned. “More often than not they’re keen to go 15% or 20% larger, so you do not wish to miss that.”
He suggests that every one candidates negotiate, particularly if they’ve leverage.
“When you have competing presents, when you have pending interviews, all these sorts of issues — then undoubtedly negotiate. You’ll be able to improve the compensation between 20% to 30%,” he mentioned.
Pandey was promoted at Salesforce after 15 months and received a 20% bump from his earlier pay, bringing his whole to round $240,000.
The brand new function moved him from software program engineer to senior software program engineer. He led tasks with two to a few engineers and labored with product managers and clients. He additionally discovered that his work had extra visibility.
After two years at Salesforce, he utilized to Meta in 2021.
Meta
He joined Meta the identical yr he grew to become a senior software program engineer. It was nonetheless a vertical transfer due to the other ways Salesforce and Meta set up ranges.
“Essentially the most important factor occurred in my profession after I made the transfer from Salesforce to Meta, which was near nearly 80-90% hike” in pay, Pandey mentioned.
Across the time he utilized to Meta, Pandey additionally utilized to TikTok, LinkedIn, and two different firms. He used presents from these firms to barter his compensation at Meta.
“Be very clear that you’ve different presents, even when you have interviews occurring point out these, as a result of it is also leverage,” he mentioned. It indicators to the recruiter that they’ve to maneuver quick and work along with your parameters.
Having different presents meant that Meta’s recruiters tried to match base wage and restricted inventory models from the very best of all presents.
Other than being clear, Pandey mentioned it is very important be proactive and analysis how compensation works in numerous firms. For instance, candidates ought to examine how shares are refreshed, he mentioned. A refresher is when the inventory possibility portion of an worker’s compensation is up to date.
“I additionally negotiated my sign-on bonus and mentioned, ‘Hey, at Salesforce, I will be leaving my 30 to 40k of annual bonus if I be part of you. Are you able to assist me accommodate that?'”
Pandey was supplied $520,000 in annual pay in that 2021 transfer.
He’s at the moment a senior software program engineer at Meta’s Menlo Park workplace.
Enterprise Insider has verified his provide letters, employment historical past, and Meta compensation.
Do you’re employed in tech, finance, or consulting and have a narrative to share about your compensation journey? E mail this reporter at shubhangigoel@insider.com.
