Negotiating the parts of an offer beyond base salary
Take a hospitalist candidate who has a written offer with a base salary that seems fair, but the RVU-based productivity bonus threshold is set high enough that it rarely pays out, and the offer includes no loan repayment despite the candidate mentioning a resident debt load in an earlier conversation.
In new-offer mode, the AI holds the position a real recruiter or department chair would, defending the productivity threshold as standard and treating loan repayment as a separate, harder ask, rather than folding at the first pushback.
A different session in internal-raise mode covers a physician two years into a role who has absorbed a larger patient panel without a corresponding pay adjustment, negotiating against a supervisor who points to a flat departmental budget instead of the added workload.
What the negotiation actually covers
New-offer mode covers the full range of a physician compensation package: base salary, the RVU productivity structure, a sign-on bonus, loan repayment, and call-coverage expectations tied to the pay itself. Internal-raise mode centers on a different case, a physician already in a role making a case for more, usually against a fixed budget or a standard raise cycle the supervisor points to first.
In both modes, the AI holds a position and expects the candidate to make the case for a specific number or term rather than simply stating a preference.
Scoring
How scoring works for a negotiation instead of an interview
This type is scored on how the negotiation itself went, not on general hireability the way other types are, so a candidate who states a well-supported number and holds it under pushback scores differently than one who folds immediately or one who never states a number at all.
The abrupt-ending penalty applies directly here: a session that stops without landing on a next step, a follow-up call, a revised offer, a date to revisit, loses points even if individual answers along the way were strong. Communication is scored on how clearly a specific number or term gets stated and defended, and Behavioral picks up composure under the pushback itself.
Frequently asked questions
How does the new-offer mode differ from internal-raise mode for a physician?
New-offer mode rehearses negotiating a full offer package, base salary, productivity bonus, sign-on, and loan repayment, before accepting a position. Internal-raise mode rehearses making a case for more pay in a role a candidate already holds, typically against a fixed budget the supervisor raises first.
Does the AI actually push back, or does it concede quickly?
It holds a position the way a real recruiter or supervisor would, defending a productivity threshold or a flat budget rather than agreeing to the first counter offered, so the candidate has to make an actual case for a specific number.
How does ending the conversation without an agreement affect my score?
The scoring system applies a penalty for an abrupt ending, a session that stops without landing on a next step like a follow-up call or a revised number, even if the answers up to that point were otherwise strong.
Is this scored the same way a regular interview is?
No. This type scores how the negotiation itself went, whether a number got stated and defended and whether the conversation reached a next step, rather than evaluating general hireability the way the other interview types do.
Related pages
Practice the negotiation before you sign anything
Run a salary-negotiation AI interview in new-offer or internal-raise mode to rehearse defending a specific number against real pushback before the actual conversation happens.