Improve Your Value in Contract Negotiations

By Cord Harper, CEO of Endeavor Agency

February 21, 2020

Define your value effectively in the interview and you will improve your value in contract negotiations.


OUR CLIENT’S STORY

“This negotiation went so much better than the last time I went through it,” my client shared. “The previous company had no interest in negotiating at all. In fact, they gave me 24 hours to decide if I wanted the job or they were going to offer it to someone else. What’s up with that?”


“There can be multitude of variables,” I said. “However, it sounds like the last time they had several candidates in mind and didn’t really see a huge difference from one to the next. They were prepared to walk away.”


“How was that different this time?” she asked.


“This time you were a much more powerful communicator of your value,” I shared. “It wasn’t a close contest. They were no longer even interested in the other candidates and were much more open to meeting your needs for fear of losing you to someone else.”


Your performance in the interview not only wins you the offer, it sets the stage for negotiations. If the employer views you as a commodity that is easily interchanged with someone else they have no incentive to budge on price.


It’s the simple lessons of supply and demand. When you create your own demand curve by breaking away from the pack, then you are rare and valuable.


Define your value as a field of one, and you will improve your value in contract negotiations.

Contact Endeavor

About Endeavor Agency


Endeavor Agency is the nation’s leading company helping individual executives, VPs, senior managers, professionals, and physicians find the jobs they truly want. Our additional resources, expertise, and career change specialists help our clients uncover more and better job opportunities than what they could access on their own.


Endeavor Agency helps rebrand clients to effectively communicate their value throughout the interview process and increase their odds dramatically of winning offers. Additionally, Endeavor Agency helps clients achieve better results in negotiating the terms of their employment agreements.


Endeavor Agency also provides executive coachingoutplacement services, and business consulting services. Endeavor can also help guide executives focused on the private equity and venture capital market segments.

Busy executive checking watch while sitting at a laptop trying to conduct an executive job hunt
By Cord Harper March 9, 2026
Discover how busy professionals can make time for an executive job search. Build momentum, expand networking, and tap into the executive hidden job market.
ChatGPT on mobile screen asking how it can help you
By Cord Harper March 2, 2026
Senior leaders are increasingly asked about AI in executive interviews. Learn how to craft a strategic, credible response that resonates with today’s hiring boards.
an executive job seeker asking a vendor salesperson about hidden job opportunities in their industry
By Cord Harper February 24, 2026
Most executive roles are filled before they’re posted. Learn how vendor sales professionals can help you access the hidden job market through strategic networking.
two people shaking hands to form a partnership
By Cord Harper February 23, 2026
Senior executives explain what executive career partners do, how they differ from recruiters, and how to choose the right firm for a strategic career transition.
older professional male thinking about making a career change
By Cord Harper February 16, 2026
Feeling stuck in your career? Learn why it happens, why change feels so hard, and how experienced professionals can move forward with clarity and confidence.
career coach talking to executive client and helping him find clarity for his career
By Cord Harper February 10, 2026
Explore Endeavor Agency’s three-circle career transition framework and learn how executives align skills, passion, and market demand to make confident career moves.
person choosing an executive outplacement firm using a keyboard and tapping an outplacement button
By Cord Harper February 9, 2026
Executives and senior leaders may have the right to choose their outplacement firm. Learn how to request a provider that offers real, human-centered support.
downtrodden executive leaning against wall after not landing the job offer yet again
By Cord Harper February 2, 2026
Why do outstanding executives not get job offers, despite strong interviews? A clear look at the odds, hidden hiring advantages, and the U.S. executive job market.
Executive male looking at Endeavor Agency's website on his phone.
By Cord Harper January 30, 2026
Considering a career coach? Learn how executive career coaching delivers real ROI through clarity, positioning, negotiation insight, and better long-term decisions.
The likeability of a candidate during a job interview is essential for that candidate to get hired.
By Cord Harper January 26, 2026
Likeability plays a bigger role in job interviews than most candidates realize. Discover why employers choose people they connect with — and how to stand out.
More Posts