Salary.com Accuracy?
 

I was asked to take a look on salary.com to get an average salary base for a specific position. Maybe it's just me, but the national and area-specific salaries seem a bit high. I'm assuming they may use the U.S. Census to gather this information. Do any of the companies you work for use salary.com as a point of reference?

We do as a point of reference in one department, but it is not HR, it has nothing to do with our employees, and it's not reflective of what we are paid. Unfortunately titles are rather generic and can span a broad spectrum.

I haven't looked at my own in a couple of years, but when I last did, my salary was far above the range they gave for our locality.

That is so true. The salaries are based on the title of the position. From my experience, the same position's job responsibilities tend to shift, company to company.

I guess if you have a vague job title like "Account Executive" or "Project Manager," it's easy to have a wide salary spread. I'm an Architect, and the titles salary.com uses are pretty much based on what different levels of architects do, and it's pretty accurate. I prefer Payscale.com because they factor in whether or not you have a Master's, and where you went to school.

I know some companies turn to the professional association of XYZs for salary guidance. Most of your major associations will publish an annual report which breaks down salaries in major metro areas for specific title / duties.

I can tell you for PR and advertising, salary.com is worthless. Don't know about other fields.

For me, salary.com was spot on.

Of course, I also work for the government and I imagine there isn't a whole lot of deviation between myself and others who are also constrained by predetermined government salary ranges.

.....Kelly :)

Until about 18 months ago, I worked as a hiring manager and networked with a LOT of recruiters. We generally felt salary.com ran 10-30% high for most of the position types that we filled.

Have you tried glassdoor.com? People write in their company, specific job titles, where they are located, and salary range. I think it's pretty spot on.

I've found that salary.com is a bit low for my field and area. I believe my company uses some report from a local firm.

Try Glassdoor.com

It's kind of the "Apartment Ratings" of the Corporate World. People who work/ed there submit info about the company, culture, and even salary including base & bonuses

For my field, salary.com was pretty on.

Salary.com is CRAZY high for my field and area. Payscale seems accurate or maybe a little low.

Salary
 

About 10 years ago the average salary for a college graduate straight out of school and entering into corporate America in Finance/Business/Banking was appx. $35,000. Today I've heard people say it's around $45,000. I agree that it depends on the company. I think that a lot of young college grads let that go to their heads and get disappointed when they start off making less than that. Key words - "Start Off". Assuming you are working for good people, if you're a good worker and excel it won't be long before you pass your expectation. From there you only grow. If you're stuck in a position that won't be taking you anywhere in the future then you may want to consider reading "Who moved my cheese" and go somewhere else where your value will be appreciated. Best of luck GCers.

Regards,

Boodleboy322