Help requested in putting together salary package

Hi all,

I have been requested by a potential employer to put together a salary package for a job opportunity based in Delhi, and don´t have the foggiest idea of where to begin. The position is Regional Sales Manager for all of India of an industrial product, and work would involve heavy travel (mostly by air) across all of India overseeing business in the country. Obviously, I need to have easy access to major airport, which is why I mention Delhi.

I would like to know what others in a similar situation have included in their packages, basically to know what is absolutely essential to bring to the negotiating table.

Cheers!

I thought I should add that I am a forty-something male engineer, never have been to India, and will be unaccompanied.

Thanks beforehand!

Here's what my past expat packages have looked like, aside from salary:


- Accomodation, including utilities & part-time housekeeper
- food allowance
- car & driver
- tax equalization & preparation (i.e., your tax burden, including any India taxes, would be no better or no worse than your taxes would be in the US). The prep part is because the offshore posting greatly complicates your taxes -- my employer's outside accountants (Deloitte) always did mine.
- Two annual trips home, or to another location of equal or lesser cost.

Adding to what Curt said:

-Full expat medical coverage which also deals with medical repatriation-->absolutely essential to have.
-Traveling in business class on local fights where this is available

Read up on some of the threads already dealing with these matters and be sure your employer sets aside a SERIOUS budget for accommodation as a half decent place in a good area in Delhi can easily cost 6000+ USD/month. Have your company draw up the lease contract and make sure THEY deal with the deposit of lease guarantees if applicable (easy to deposit, hard to get back). For the salary it depends, especially because you don't have to worry about a spouse or kids but usually it's a deal where you get paid your normal salary and a 'hardship' part that will be at least more or less equal to that, on top of the already mentioned stuff.

It's all very negotiable, just don't sell yourself short.

In addition, I would add the following.

-Your existing life/disability cover may be void if you are out of your home country for an extended period. Make sure your contract provides full cover, and your family is adequately protected.

-Cost of moving and repatriation fully paid for.
-Can part of your salary be paid in your home country? Mitigate risk of losing out on exchange rates.

And also a one time relocation allowance, to cover costs of setting up a new home, soft furnishings and the like.

You're right, I didn't think of suggesting that as it doesn't play in my case. But the FX risk is substantial (I recall the INR/EUR being at 64 in aug 2008, 70 in october 2009 and 60 now) and with the rupee you can't hedge it. A friend arrived in july 2007 and had to deposit a one-year rental guarantee in INR himself, with the FX fluctuations he was down 14K EUR in october 2009 and still about 5K now.

Are you sure ? That beats a two bed room, high floor, overlooking Hudson river, apartment in NYC.

I'm dead sure 'cause I'm sitting in it and just one month ago I signed a check for coming year's rental to the tune of 3456000 INR, which comes to 74K USD at today's rate. Don't tell me it's a ridiculous amount. I know. It's just that in this neighborhood you won't find anything cheaper, of that I'm confident. It's a 3-bedroom place, one of the bedrooms is an office, has a kitchen, large living room and a large rooftop terrace. By no means excessive, I can assure you I've lived much better in both the US and Europe at a fraction of the cost. The electrical wiring sucks and we had some minor water infiltration after this year's abundant monsoon.

With a rent budget of just $2500 pm, I'm resigned to moving into a hovel...

Not at all, it depends on the location. If you want centrally located, quiet, green, safe, good water/power supply...you'll pay through the nose. But in areas close by you can still find something decent for about your budget. It's just very, very hard to find a place with western comfort at a more or less acceptable price. Look at Defence colony, that's on top of my list as far as good price/quality and absolute quality goes. Where I am (Jor bagh) it's actually a bit too quiet/dead for my liking but my employer has certain standards they expect staff to adhere to as far as housing is concerned, preferences for certain areas etc...and here I am.

Thanks so much for posting and to help me sort my way - very good stuff here. I am wondering about the Defence Colony - would it be a practical commute to Airport, or would another location serve me better?

DefCol is on the Ring Road, so it's not bad, but Vasant Vihar is another nice area to the west that would be closer to the airport. There's a recent thread about it here.

I agree, VV or one of the gated complexes in Gurgaon would be appropriate.

Vasant Vihar might be just the ticket for you - not too far from the airport, more lively than Jor Bagh, and much more reasonably priced as well. I'm planning to stay in VV when I stay Dilli in December.