Leverage
Do you have leverage to negotiate?
Leverage in an employment exit isn't about legal threats. It's about what the employer would rather not lose — continuity, a clean signature, a quiet departure. Some of it is operational, some of it is relational, and some situations have very little of either. Reading which one you are in is the first thing your advisor does.
The commercial picture
What employers actually weigh
Employers rarely improve an offer because someone is unhappy. They improve it when saying yes is cheaper, faster or less disruptive than saying no. These are the factors that move that calculation.
Continuity
How much of the work walks out with you, and how long the gap lasts. Sole ownership of a system, a client or a mid-flight project is the version of this that carries the most weight.
Timing
Whether the exit lands close to a vesting date, a bonus cycle or a commission payout — and how that timing looks internally.
What they still need from you
A signature on a release, a new covenant, a clean assignment of work you built, a hand-off. Anything the employer wants is part of the picture.
Consistency
Whether the exit matches the company's own paperwork and how comparable situations were handled. Standardized group programs leave far less room than individual decisions.
Who can still say yes
Some packages are set by formula with no local discretion. Others sit with a person who can adjust them if approached well.
What is documented
A remembered remark is not a negotiating position. A dated record of one is. What matters commercially is whether the record exists, not how strongly it is felt.
Money still outstanding
Unpaid commission, an unpaid bonus or an open draw balance is an amount both sides can see. Employers generally prefer to settle a documented pay gap inside the exit rather than leave it open afterward, which makes it one of the more concrete items on the table.
A quick self-check
- Would your departure break something that is hard to replace this quarter?
- Is money you already earned about to vest, pay out, or be forfeited?
- Does the company want anything new from you — a covenant, an assignment, a hand-off, silence?
- Is there someone senior who would advocate for you if asked well?
- Is this a standardized group program, or a decision a person can still adjust?
- Is any inappropriate conduct documented in writing, or only remembered?
- Did the adverse action follow closely after a complaint, an accommodation request, or a leave?
A yes to any of these usually means there is something to negotiate. All no still leaves room — it just changes the approach. Which asks apply to your situation, in what order, and in what words is the work your advisor does on your case, not something a web page can tell you.
Find out where you stand
The free risk check takes four questions and gives you a score. If you engage us, your advisor reads your leverage from your own answers and builds it into a written playbook with the exact asks and the order to raise them in.
This page describes commercial and operational negotiating position only. It is not legal advice and says nothing about whether any term is lawful or enforceable. For potential legal claims, consult a licensed attorney in your state.