Career Flux - raise

How to Negotiate the Raise You Deserve

It’s easy to sit at your desk, do your work, and go home to complain all night. You’re uninterested, underwhelmed, and underpaid. Well, you can likely fix the first two with a tweak of the third by asking for a raise. Before you go storming down your boss’s door, there are a few pointers you’ll need to be successful.

“’Asking for a raise reminds both you and your boss of all you have been doing to contribute to the company’s performance,’ says Jones. ‘Downplaying that for fear of upsetting the financial apple cart increases the possibility you’ll continue to do your work with a chip on your shoulder, which will likely cause your future performance to suffer.’” – Forbes.com

When to Ask

So you’ve been on the job for 3 months, and your performance has been top notch; time to ask for a raise? Not so much. There are good and bad times to ask for a raise, and it’s important to keep these in mind before scheduling this very important meeting. So when should you bite the bullet?

After a year on the job – This gives you enough time to prove your worth and get relevant samples of your value to the company.
Growth period – When the company is doing well, they want to continue doing so. Just show them how you can make that happen.

Have a Plan

The most important part of negotiating a raise is having a plan in place. Not only might this mean more money for you, but could potentially be costly for the company as well. This is your time to show how you shine in the office, in your field and in your position.

Quantify – Companies want cold, hard facts. They can’t refute your worth when it’s spelled out in numbers and dollar signs.
Your value – Gather customer testimonials that mention you directly. Refer back to a time when co-workers have referenced your good work.
What you will bring in the future – Your boss is appreciative of the work you’ve already done, but their eyes are to the future. What can you continue bringing to the table? Can you take on my work?
What salary do you want – Do your research and find what the going pay for someone in your position/time frame/experience is. Suggest this, as they will likely ask. It shows you did your homework and are prepared with that knowledge.

Consider Potential Rebuttals

When you ask for a raise, it’s important to think like your boss. While you are number one in your world, your boss likely has concerns about the company as a whole, your coworkers, etc. It’s important to predict potential rebuttals and how you’ll refute them.

They say: “The answer is no.” – You say: “What can I do to improve in the future.”
They say: “Now is not a good time.” – You say: “Is there an optimal time for us to revisit this?”

Points to Avoid

While there are a handful of points you want to be sure to include in your request, it is even more important remembering the ones you should not include.

Personal needs – Your boss doesn’t care about getting your rent in on time, getting your cable bill paid, or the vacation you hope to take in December. Keep your meeting strictly work-related, and avoid anything personal.
Co-worker comparison – Don’t compare your current or desired salary to other employees. Your boss doesn’t want to be put in this position, nor does it bode well for the confidence you have in yourself.

Negotiating a raise takes a lot of courage, and can be scary if you’ve never done it before. However, it’s important to go in prepared. Know your value and how to best present it. Do your research about salary ranges and be ready to stand by your hard work. Whether they say no, or not, it puts you on the radar and that just might be enough.

Jessica Sanders is an avid small business writer touching on topics from social media to phone systems. She writes for an online resource that gives advice on topics including background checks for lead generation resource, Resource Nation.

Filed Under: At Workplace, Guest Experts, Salary And Perks Tagged With: raise, salary

Best Times to Ask for a Raise for the Most Success

By Nicole Rodgers Leave a Comment

As an employee, you know how hard you work each day. Only you know the dedication and professionalism you bring to a job. In fact, you may even be thinking about asking your boss for a raise. If you are, then you should know that sometimes are better than others for asking for a raise. You want to increase the chances that your boss will give you the raise, so knowing when to ask is important. The following tips could help you land the raise you need and deserve.

Right After An Excellent Evaluation

The best time to ask for a raise is right after an excellent evaluation. Most bosses have to conduct one or two evaluations per year on each employee. When you go into a closed-door meeting with your boss to discuss your performance on the job, this could be the opportunity you need. Wait until your boss has finished going through the evaluation with you. If you had positive remarks and met your goals, then this is the time to use that information to your advantage. When your boss asks why you deserve a raise, you can list the same points that your boss just told you. Your boss can’t argue with himself.

When Your Boss Gets Praised By His Boss

Another great time to ask for a raise is when your boss looks good in front of his superiors. When your boss feels like he is doing a great job, he is more likely to be in a good mood and want to help you. This works even better if you had a hand in helping your boss look good for his superiors. Try to schedule a time to ask for your raise right after your boss has received congratulations for a job well done or has maybe even received a promotion or raise himself.

When You Take On Extra Work Load

If you have recently taken on more of a work load in your place of employment, then this is a good time to ask about a raise. For example, if another employee left and that person’s work load was shifted to you, then you can use that as a bargaining chip. Be prepared to explain how much more work you are having to do to justify the raise in pay.

After Earning A Degree Or Certification

Have you recently earned a degree, certification, or licensure? If so, this is the time to show off what you have accomplished and ask for a raise. You deserve professional credit for earning a higher degree or earning a certificate or license. You can show your boss how committed you are to the company and to learning to do the best job possible. Your educational endeavors might just land you the raise you want.

When You Get A Positive Commendation

Be ready to ask for a raise as soon as you get a positive commendation from your employer. Maybe one of your customers called to praise your work, or maybe you reached a major sales goal in your department. Perhaps you found a way to save your company money each quarter. When you can show your boss tangible evidence as to why you deserve a raise, this is the best time to ask.

If you have hopes of getting the raise you ask for, watch for the little clues that show the boss is pleased with you. The best time to ask for a raise is when your boss is happy.

Nicole Rodgers has been blogging in the business, finance, and technology industries for three years. When Nicole was running her small business she made sure to provide her employees with good employee benefits in order to keep morale up. She always makes sure her employees are happy with where they work. She made it priority to provide good health insurance to keep her employees healthy.

Filed Under: Guest Experts, Salary And Perks Tagged With: Boss, employee, Employer, raise, salary

How to Get That Raise

By Adam C Leave a Comment

Author Byline: Adam C is a London, UK based copywriter and has given sound workplace advice in this article.

Asking for a raise is probably one of the most awkward things any of us has to do as part of our working lives. However, it is something that we all have to do at least occasionally, so it’s definitely worth being prepared for when the time comes. Read on for some top tips on how you can go about getting that raise.

Go the Extra Mile

First of all, it’s not going to be easy to get a raise if you’re the kind of employee who pitches up late, does the minimum amount of work all day and then leaves at the first opportunity. You need to prove that you’re worth the money, so work as hard as you can. Volunteer to take on extra responsibility if you’re able to; leading on successful projects is a good sign you’re worth your salary. Also make sure you speak up in team meetings and don’t let anyone else take credit for your ideas – or else they might get the raise that should have been yours.

Be Prepared To Ask For It

You also need to be prepared to ask for a raise as its rare one will just be offered to you. You’ll probably have regular review meetings with your boss, and this can be a good time to broach the subject. They may even be expecting it and even if they’re not, they’ll have had the conversation with other people before, so be brave and ask them.

Pick Your Moment

However, you should always be careful when choosing your moment to ask for a raise. For instance, the week after you’ve made a monumental mistake is probably not the best time to raise the issue, no matter how successful you’ve been for the rest of the year. If your boss is having difficulties, you might also want to wait a while. However, don’t delay too long or you might miss your moment and end up having to wait even longer for another opportunity to come along.

Prove Your Worth

Finally, when you go into your meeting with the aim of getting that raise, make sure you prove your worth. If you can, put together some statistics to prove what you’re worth to the company. Brought in some hot new clients? Make sure you mention that. Got some great feedback from a superior? Provide proof if possible. Keeping a written record of your achievements is a good idea; that way, when you go to ask for a raise, you’ll have plenty of proof as to why you deserve one.

This post is contributed by Total Jobs – a leading job site that currently offers a variety of job vacancies from environment jobs to charity jobs.