I’m at a crossroads in my career and would really value your advice.
Over the past few years, I’ve built strong experience as a Business Analyst in government and kaupapa Māori contexts, working on operational policy, systems improvement, and sector reform. With my current organisation closing at the end of the year, I’ve been reflecting on where to head next: deepen the BA pathway, move into strategy or consulting, or build my independent practice.
Right now, though, I have a very real decision in front of me. An exciting opportunity has come up, and it aligns closely with my skills and interests, offers stability, and has clear room to grow strategically. The catch is that it’s below the current market rate for Senior BAs and less than my current salary. Taking it could mean being financially behind for a few years, with slower catch-up in salary progression.
So I’m weighing up:
Strategy vs. salary – is it worth trading financial progression now for long-term alignment and stability?
Security vs. risk – in this market, is this kind of role the best I could realistically expect, or should I hold out for something closer to market rate?
Pathways forward – how have others managed the balance between immediate pay and long-term positioning, especially when stepping into a role that excites you but pays less?
I’d love to hear how others in the Collective have navigated similar decisions, what guided you, what you’d do differently, and how you think about these trade-offs.
It has taken me a really long time to realise that actually I run way more on gut for life decisions than I’d ever let people know! If the opportunity was one I just wanted to do in my bones, then I’d do it and rationalise the financial hit. If not, I’d tell people I was being financially sensible.
But because you say that you think it would be interesting … My question is: Can you negotiate?
The reason I ask is that one of my favourite clauses I ever got written into a contract was basically the contract version of “I take lower pay but in 6 months I get an out-of-cycle performance review and bumped to the next band if I’m exceeding expectations”. I de-risked their hiring position but essentially locked in a payrise in 6 months based on my performance. I minimised the time at the lower pay so it was a far less risky position for me to take.
And there is lots of types of negotiation – not just financial. Perks, holiday, flexible hours, car/bike parks, study, training … all of which could help invest in you as a overall human. The funny thing is, those out of the box perks are often way easier to get internal sign-off on than just plain old money!
I’ve done various things to “try and get ahead” and honestly, the ones that didn’t align to my gut weren’t fun, and the ones that did somehow worked out.
But then again, I’m worried I’m becoming increasingly new-agey in my old age ha ha ha!
Thank you @hannah. This is such great advice. Everything about the role feels good, apart from the salary and the timing. In an ideal world I would love to be able to finish where I am and see it through to the end of the year. The new organisation is under immediate pressure so wouldn’t be able to sway that for me.
I think I will ask about an out of cycle review as that would help me catch up faster. Then if that’s not an option perhaps I could ask about a 9 day fortnight. I love my job, but I would also LOVE to work less!
A 9 day fortnight wouldn’t help me towards my home ownership goals, but it would help me in maintaining my sanity!
Personally I have taken pay cuts a couple of times in my career that have ultimately put me in the position I am now - so I’m a big fan of following diverse experiences over chasing the safe route!
But also love Hannah’s advice - it would be great if you can have your cake and eat it too!!
A mid-band pay offer would be a 12.5% reduction in base salary for me and loss of benefits totalling around $3,300 per year. The struggle is I’m not sure the intangible benefits outweigh the tangible costs.
The role itself isn’t truly unique in subject matter, career pathway, or flexibility. The strongest upsides are manager fit and sector alignment. I’ve always had an interest in this particular sector.
I should note that I don’t think I’m overpaid where I am now. It’s pretty much where my research says I should be given my experience, quals and market rate according most of the NZ sources of data on salary.