All you’re hearing is
how tough the economy is, people are losing their jobs and companies are
tightening their belt. How can you possibly ask for a payrise in these
tough conditions? It is possible and the reason being – good staff are hard to
find and companies will do what it takes to hold on to their most valuable
staff…
So here’s how you go about it
Be the best – become the most valuable staff member
If you’re not already standing out, start. Make sure the work you do can directly correlate with an impact sales revenue, customers, efficiaincy – all the measure your company cares about. Do more than your colleagues, put your hand up for more responsibility. Clarify your unique selling point. In order to get the pay rise you have to be worth it and be justified.
Know how much your worth
Do your homework and get a realistic market salary range for your level. Don’t approach them with an over the top pay increase – they wont take you seriously and you may lose credibility and chance to change your circumstances.
Prepare your argument
You know what your company cares about, you know what your boss cares about! So make sure that as you prepare your case you have covered those important points. Focus on your results and concrete benefits you have delivered to the company – and show the quality of your work, if you may have made a 100 sales calls but show how 70% of those turned into sales. Show vision, show you think outside your role and your department to the wider aspirations of the company – companies want to know that you can contribute to the longer term goals.
Don’t wait for things to get better before you ask for the pay rise
Strangely enough it’s when your company is recovering from a setback that is the best time to challenge your salary. Have they lost a key account, are sales falling or has a key employee left? Companies will be in damage limitation mode and looking to stabilise their business. They’ll be naturally wanting to hang on to their most valuable staff – so there’s no better time than during a crisis.
Speak to the right person
Make your case to the decision maker, if it’s your bosses boss or the head of HR – invite them all to meeting. Don’t fully reveal the nature of the request – tell them you’d like to discuss your position in the company to avoid them being dismissive.
Make your appeal both emotional and logical – use your evidence of contribution along with your passion for the company. Allow them time to discuss and get them to agree a follow up meeting.
Asking for a pay rise is never easy and in the economic circumstance if can feel impossible. But it is said that less than 10% of staff ask for a payrise, so if you’ve found the courage to have this difficult conversation do yourself justice by making the best case for yourself!
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