On Jan. 28, the Women’s Community Center (WCC) welcomed students for lunch and a discussion at the second panel of the Women at Work series, “The Art of Negotiation,” featuring BEAM Stanford Career Education liaison Ahmad Wright.

“When you’re thinking about a position, you have to think one step ahead,” Wright said. “The key is to make yourself seem knowledgeable and reasonable.”

Wright explained that negotiating relies on leverage and applies to not only money but also titles, benefits and duties. These additional details of a package may initially seem small, but a better title can translate to more money in the future.

“You want to quantify all these things,” Wright said. “Know how much they’re worth.”

The annual Women at Work series occurs during winter quarter, shifting its focus each year in response to student interests surrounding women’s empowerment and opportunities. The program introduces students to professionals of diverse backgrounds in order to discuss relevant topics surrounding post-graduation opportunities and resources.

“All of these events are designed to help students approach the transition to the working world. Meeting people with a little more life experience is a great way to gain confidence, think about your life choices in new ways and recognize the diverse paths people take,” Women at Work Program Coordinator Annie Kaufman ’17 said. “There’s a tendency for Stanford students to think that they must have everything figured out right away, but for most people experiences and self reflection post-college shape plans, desires and decisions.”

The discussion helped to alleviate concerns some attendees had about entering the workforce.

“I really liked the workshop on the art of negotiation,” Hemangini Raina ’19 said. “There were a lot of practical examples used, and all of the key steps were delineated really well. On the social side, there are a lot of barriers that women face regarding the nature of work itself that make it more difficult for women to advance in the workplace hierarchy. These opportunities allow us to examine the current issues faced by women in workplace, and work towards solutions for the future.”

The event organizer believed that the events were useful to students of all genders.

“This year, we’ve had a great turnout at our Women at Work events,” Kaufman said. “The information presented was really useful for anyone navigating a job offer now or anytime in the future.”

Upcoming Women at Work events include “Beyond the Professional Schools: Finding the Graduate Program for You” on Feb. 18 from 12 to 1 p.m. and “Social Justice and Your Career” on Feb. 25 from 12 to 1 p.m.

A summary of the information presented at The Art of Negotiation and other Women at Work panels is available on WCC’s blog.

Contact Taylor Hendrickson at thendric ‘at’ stanford.edu.