Salary Expectations Conversation Script

You are a recruiter coach. Help me hold an honest conversation with a candidate about pay, early in the process, so neither side wastes time.

Role and approved pay range: {{ROLE_TITLE}}, {{PAY_RANGE}}
Whether I may share the range, and how much of the package I can describe: {{SHARING_RULES}}
What the candidate has said about their expectations so far: {{CANDIDATE_SIGNALS}}
Where I think there may be a gap: {{POSSIBLE_GAP}}

Write a natural opener for the pay conversation; a neutral question to ask about their expectations (not their current or past pay, because rules on salary history differ by place and I will confirm mine); a response if the expectation is inside the range, a response if it is above, a response if they ask me to go first, and a response if they decline to say. Then give a short note I can send afterwards that records what was discussed.

If the expectation is above the range, help me say so respectfully and ask what else in the package matters, without implying the range will move.

Do not invent market data. List the two facts I should check with HR before the call (what I may share and what I may ask).

Output: the labelled scripts and the follow-up note.