R. Gaines Baty is president of R. Gaines Baty Associates Inc., a retained executive-search firm in Dallas.

• We've heard recruiters talk about "candidate greed." How does it typically reveal itself?

Frequently, it starts with vague answers to compensation questions. Employers will ask what you make, because right or wrong, most offers are based on what the job pays and what you're currently making. Most companies want to come up with a good number that is a combination of those two factors. A lot of times, a candidate will name an amount well above where they are now or that's very unrealistic. For instance, they might say, "I won't move unless I get a 25% or a 50% increase." They may be assuming that if they start high, they can always come down. However, they may price themselves out of the market.

Independent of that, candidates often embellish their earnings. You'll hear, "Well, I'm currently at $200,000 a year." When you check into it, you find out the person is making a $140,000 base salary, then has added the worth of his benefits, plus a target bonus to come up with that number.

Another tendency is a phenomenon called salary creep. We'll talk with a candidate about compensation and his chief criteria for selecting a job. Most of the time, they say other factors are more important than money, which might rank third or fourth in importance.

Then we get to the offer stage, and suddenly money becomes the most important thing and the other factors fall off the list. And right when they get the offer, a lot of people suddenly have gotten a raise or are about to get one or have received another offer. This seems to jump out of nowhere.

• What's so bad about trying to get all the compensation you can?

If you push too hard, you risk losing the deal altogether. I've also seen employers get hard feelings about these types of tactics. They may feel they've been gouged a bit. Now assume you get what you want. Once you're hired, you'll make more than your peers. Who's most susceptible to a layoff? If you're the top performer, that's one thing, but if you're one of 10 or 200, and you're priced much higher than the others, who's going to get the hatchet first? Probably you.

• What's the best way to negotiate a pay offer?

We always recommend that both the company and candidate go into negotiations with a win-win attitude. What that means is that the candidate doesn't try to gouge the company and the company doesn't try to lowball the candidate. Each might have come out a little better in the end if they had pushed, but this way, they both win and get what they want.

• Has the recession dampened candidate greed at all?

The recession has tempered it a bit, certainly among unemployed candidates. Most companies feel the price of executives has gone down. Clients felt up until the last six months to a year that compensation and salaries were becoming very inflated, particularly in the technology world, and that now they've come back to the ground. Most astute candidates are cognizant of this. Companies aren't willing to break the bank and there's a lot of competition, so you must be less demanding to be competitive.

We're also seeing candidates put less value on stock options. They aren't viewing them as an incentive to accept a package. They're saying the base and variable compensation are the package and "if something comes from the stock, that's great, but I won't count on it."

• What kinds of attitudes are you seeing among hiring managers now?

It's definitely a buyer's market. There are still opportunities available, but not in the quantity that existed a year ago. Up until then, clients would ask us to find a team of six or eight or 10 people, staff an organization or build a management team. Now when they call, it's to give us one or two very specific targeted searches.

Most companies are approaching hiring in a very selective manner. They're looking for the right matches at the right price. Generally they have lots of candidates to choose from and the interview process can be pretty grueling and elongated.

This market puts a premium on creating a competitive advantage. You have to find some way to get your foot in the door. Then you need really strong interview skills. This involves good questioning and selling yourself appropriately.

• What can get my foot in the door with an employer?

There are a couple of things. One is more tangible, but harder to get at, while the other is intangible. The tangible factor is whether you have applicable experience and accomplishments -- the indications that you can do the job the employer wants done.

It's a good idea to ask the company or executive recruiter key questions about that, and then listen. If you're talking with the employer, ask what he or she wants you to accomplish. If you're talking with a recruiter, ask, "What does your client want to accomplish?"

You don't have a long time to find this out, so you have to be quick at drilling down to the real issues and objectives behind the opening. Once you have heard and understand them, you can effectively match your skills and accomplishments to those requirements.

It's very important to be honest about whether you're right for the job. If you really aren't a fit or you think it's a stretch, there's still a tendency to want to get your foot in the door. But it's better to be honest and to help the hiring manager or recruiter. Recruiters especially will appreciate that, because they don't have to fight through all the questions to determine if you're a fit. They'll remember that and call you back when they do have something. A lot of times, a big part of the challenge for hiring managers is determining if the candidate really has the skills or is just saying he has them.

The intangible factor is the "connection" you make. The employer or recruiter is looking for some sort of rapport and a sense that you have a good attitude, lots of energy and are an accomplishment-oriented person. This is sometimes less tangible, but the reaction formed to the candidate may be more automatic. If the recruiter or hiring manager senses you have those things and can make things happen, plus the right experience, they likely will be interested.

• Do candidates often try to oversell themselves to employers?

Yes. When you're good at making a connection, but you don't always have the right experience, you sometimes can talk yourself into a job that isn't a good fit. The downside of overselling your capabilities is that if you get the job and you fail at it, you'll be laid off. Then you get in a cycle that's damaging to your resume and your ego.

It's a mutual responsibility to determine if you're a good fit. That's easier said than done when you have no money and you have to make your next mortgage payment, but it's best to determine this. We spend a lot of time in the interview situation drilling down to find substance. The way you do it is to ask behavioral questions to get at the actual examples of what a candidate has done.

A candidate who has asked the right question about the job can give precise answers to interview questions. That's a good way to present yourself. But really good personalities often can disguise the lack of skills, and some people who don't have all the skills can learn them and do a great job. Hiring isn't an exact science. However, the more clarity you can get about whether this is a match from both sides, the more likely there will be a successful employment relationship.

• What can I do to make a good impression on an employer?

Ask questions about the criteria the employer is seeking and give truthful answers. Demonstrate you have energy and a good attitude. By doing this, you may get the opportunity to create a longer-term relationship. If an interview doesn't pay off today, it might down the road.

• What do you think of candidates who accept counteroffers?

It doesn't hurt to accept a counteroffer from your employer, if you don't mind being manipulated, used and having a black mark against your integrity. But ask yourself if you'll have to quit again to get the next raise. You always have to wonder if accepting a counteroffer from your company will affect your next promotion and if you'll be the first to go in a layoff.

Look at it this way. How would you feel if a company makes you an offer and you accept it, quit your job, your spouse quits her job and you put your house on the market? Then the company comes back to you and says, "Never mind, we found someone we like better and we don't have to pay him as much money." You made all these changes because you were counting on them. It's the same when a person accepts a job offer. The employer terminates discussions with other candidates and does many other things because it's counting on you. To change your mind is disrespectful to the company and lacks integrity. In most people's mind, it's a dishonest thing to do. If you make a commitment to a new employer, it should be well-thought-out and your word should stand.

• Has a candidate ever gone around you and contacted one of your clients directly about an opening?

Yes, it happens occasionally. Desperate people do desperate things. However, it's ill-advised for a couple of reasons. We approach a relationship with our candidates in a win- win way and we expect the same from them. For a candidate to try to go around us is a big no-no. Because of the relationships we have with our clients, I would be surprised if a company would respond to them. In the rare times it has happened, the client has said, "We don't want to touch the guy." They know the candidate lacked integrity, and we will get paid anyway.

• What are some other no-nos when working with recruiters?

It's important to be straight up. Don't play games. There should be no misinformation. Don't circumvent issues. Be honest, respectful and helpful. If you aren't dealing with a recruiter you can do this with, you should deal with someone else. Most recruiters are honest, straightforward people and it's important to not embellish, misrepresent or hide facts to get an interview. Eventually those things will be discovered and will eliminate you from further consideration. It may not be for this job, but for the perfect job that might come up at a later point in time. Treat people like you want to be treated. In the long term it may pay off.

• How should job seekers view their prospects in 2002?

Generally, it's hard not to get discouraged in such a tight market. However, job hunting is a game you can't quit. The only answer is to persevere, because only those who do will get the prize. It's OK to get discouraged, but you have to pick yourself off the ground and go out the next day with increased vigor and enthusiasm.

Looking for a job is a full-time sales job, and the product you're selling is your services. Many people don't feel comfortable selling anything, much less themselves, so they're hard-pressed to promote themselves. There's also a lot of rejection during a search, but you can't take it personally. This is a business proposition.

For a lot of people, job hunting can be a blessing in disguise if it's approached properly. You can learn marketing skills and the connections you form will be valuable over time. If nothing else, you'll start to appreciate what salespeople do on a daily basis.