Career Doctor Articles

With the kind permission of the Career Doctor, jfo is able to bring you a series of articles to help you in your work situation and longer term career management

Chasing a Bigger Salary

We could all do with a raise in salary, and by God, we’re worth it! Yet how can this desirable target be achieved? The cynical reader will think: “why, that’s easy, just ask”, but, as with all things, there are always several ways to achieve objectives, so what is the best method for you?

Rarely do you get more than one chance in asking for a raise, so asking your boss for a raise, then meekly accepting his/ her (predictable) refusal sounds to me like a pretty unsuccessful method, especially as you cannot keep asking him /her every month for a rise - repeated rejections are very demoralising to say the least.

In this article I will examine the alternatives so that the reader will be in a better position to formulate a plan of action. Regular readers will by now have concluded that I am a great believer in devising plans and making sure that these plans are well reasoned, before taking action. So the first thing to do is conduct some research.

RESEARCH THE SITUATION

What is the financial state of your employer? Look at its share price if applicable; read a copy of the latest company report; contact Companies House to see last year’s accounts.

Use your eyes and ears. What are the company cars? Mercedes and BMWs or less prestigious makes? What is the state of the company’s buildings? Pristine and immaculate, or in need of a coat of paint? Is company morale high, or are the rats leaving the sinking ship?

Most importantly, can you find out what other people (both work colleagues and employees in other companies) are being paid for doing similar work to you? Keeping a lookout for job vacancies in the press and internet may give you some idea if you are under or over-paid

If the signs are good, them maybe, just maybe, your request for a pay increase will be met sympathetically. If the signs are bad, then a refusal will be fairly predictable.

PICK YOUR MOMENT

Make a judgement as to when would be the most appropriate time to ask for a raise in salary. If your company has just failed to get an expected order, or is going through hard times and has an on-going redundancy programme, then clearly it would be ill-timed to speak to the boss about a pay rise.

Equally, if the company has a full order book and is recruiting new staff, then that would be a good time to ask. Be patient if it is clear that now is not the time, sooner or later your moment will come.

Choose your moment carefully. Judge when your boss is in a good mood and is not under greater pressure than normal. Bide your time and wait for the right moment to strike. Approach your boss on a Tuesday. He may be in a bad mood on a Monday, and by Friday he may be looking forward to the weekend, and will have forgotten about your request by Monday.

DEVELOP A STRATEGY

Now consider all the options for asking … one of the following could be right for your circumstances.

Firstly you can try appealing to your boss’s better nature, by simply asking, as nicely as you can, for a pay rise. Try the humanitarian approach; tell your boss why you need a bigger salary, and how you are struggling, financially, at the moment. Personally I think that this method is almost doomed to failure, but if your boss is full of the milk of human kindness, then appealing to his charitable and kind nature might just work.

Secondly you could draft a proposed bonus / commission scheme (if such a scheme is not used by your employer) using financial and commercial reasons for the proposal. Be sure to point out the benefits of your proposal to the company, showing how it will gain from installing your scheme.

Now pass on your proposal to the appropriate manager. If that is the MD or the HR Manager, then keep your own line manager in the loop by giving him / her a copy of your proposal. Failure to include your own manager will almost certainly alienate that person, who will probably vote against your proposal, thereby condemning it to the wastepaper bin.

Yes, I know that all your colleagues will similarly benefit from your proposed scheme if it is implemented, but that is irrelevant, you get your pay increase. And doubtless you will also get a Brownie Point from your colleagues

Thirdly you can submit a proposal to the most appropriate manager (keeping your own manager in the loop, as mentioned above) making a case for just you to have a pay rise. Point out any significant increases in workload / responsibilities / duties that have changed your job since you joined. Use facts, figures and hard evidence, not emotive pleas. If you make a reasoned case for a pay rise or regrading, then hopefully such an approach will not fall upon deaf ears.

Finally, if you do decide to draft a well-reasoned case for a pay rise, then take your time and do it thoroughly. Show your draft to friends / relatives who are senior managers and get their opinions before actually giving it to your boss.

THE TOUGH APPROACH

If you think that any form of reasonable discussion with your boss would be unlikely to succeed, you might feel forced to try a tougher approach. Think whether you should do this on your own, or do all your colleagues feel the same and are likely to support tougher action. Is there a trade union that would help you? If so talk to it and get some advice.

Formulate an action plan and then go to see the boss, on your own or part of a delegation, and place your demands for a pay increase on his / her desk. Human nature being what it is, you can expect a frosty reception and some form of reaction. Do not take this approach if you are not prepared for the consequences. Would you and your colleagues back up your demands by withdrawing your labour? Think it all through very carefully is my advice … but sadly, as history shows, sometimes only tough action ultimately works.

If there is evidence that you are being discriminated against, financially, by being paid less than other colleagues doing similar work to you, then your ultimate tough action, when all else fails, is to take your employer to an Employment Tribunal under the Equal Pay legislation. But get a good solicitor.

CAREER MANAGEMENT

There is another way of increasing your income, and that is called career management. This does not apply solely to people who are already managers, as anyone can attempt to manage their career, whatever position they are in. In recent years we have been getting more and more clients coming to our consultancy wanting to use our career management service. In essence this means drawing up and implementing an action plan whereby you manage your career path by taking appropriate action at calculated times.

What extra training / qualifications should you be getting now? Could you get your employer to put you on a secondment? How can you adjust your attitude to make a positive improvement to your performance (and thus warrant a pay increase)? Are you in the right career for you, or should you be changing direction now, to better position yourself for the future?

What about self-employment - would that be the right career move for you? Should you simply stay in your current profession, but change employer? How else could you get a promotion? All these questions, and more, are covered by our career management programme. The bottom line is not always about increasing your income though, if you manage your career professionally you may well have other priorities

THE FINAL SOLUTIONS

If all of these methods fail, you have two further options - be quiet, accept your salary and get on with your life - or marry the boss. Hard luck if the boss is not your type!

Good luck!

The Career Doctor is Eric Hearn, Chartered MCIPD and Managing Director of Milverton Career Solutions Ltd, Ascot, Berkshire, UK.

Contact details:
Tel: 01344 624383
Email: milvertoncareers@btconnect.com
Website: www.careerdevelopment.co.uk