Asking for a raise or a promotion can be a very nerve-racking experience, which is
why only 37% of people have asked for a raise in the first place. But of those
people who do ask for raises, 70% of people actually get them, so the odds are
really in your favor. I think what it comes down to is not only being
deserving and ready to have a promotion or a raise, but to have the confidence to
ask for it - and that confidence comes with preparation. So, in this video I'm
gonna share 10 tips to help you prepare for and get that promotion or raise that
you're looking for. If this is your first time here, hi, I'm kchoi and I make videos
about consulting, and careers in general, and other lifestyle-related content, so
if any of that sounds interesting to you, then please hit the subscribe button
below, as well as the notification bell so you can be notified whenever I post a
new video. Quick disclaimer before we dive in, this advice is, of course, just
from my own experience, and every company is different in terms of how they go
about their promotions and raises. It also depends on where you're at in your
growth and development at your company, so I'm not guaranteeing that
following these tips is going to get you a raise or promotion, but hopefully it'll
get you a little bit closer. Number 1: Know the criteria for your current role
and the role that you want.
If you want to be considered for a promotion to a
new role, you first need to be doing well in your current role. If you're able
to show that you're performing at or above the expectations of your current
role, then you can make a much stronger case for a promotion. The company I work
for has something called the "Consultant Playbook" which is just something that
was developed internally, and has five main sections that detail out the
different skills that a consultant at our company should have. It also has some
guidelines on how skilled up you should be in those different areas, depending on
your level and your development within the organization. Having a good
understanding of the expectations for the role you're currently in, as well as
the expectations that will be placed on you as you move up in the organization
really just creates the right foundation for you to be able to set the right
goals, and really show that you're ready for a promotion or a raise. That leads into
number 2, which is to be intentional with your development goals. When you
know the criteria and expectations of your current role and
the future role that you want, you can be very specific and intentional with the
types of goals that you set for yourself. Your development goals should help you
track progress in your current role and show potential for any future roles. Also,
when you set these goals, make sure that their SMART goals: specific,
measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-based. So again, first you gotta
have that solid understanding of what's expected of you if you want to get a
promotion, and then set goals that will help you get there. Of course, your
ultimate goal should really just be to grow and develop as an employee, but an
outcome of that could be a promotion or a raise.
Number 3: Track and share specific examples. As you make progress towards
those development goals, make sure that you're tracking progress, or, in other
words, collect data about how you're doing against those goals. This data
might be quantitative - so maybe something like sales numbers or number of
projects completed - but it could also be qualitative, so it could be an email from
a client praising a job well done, or testimonials from your co-workers about
what it's like to work with you as a project partner. It's also helpful to
regularly ask your co-workers and your manager for feedback, even if you're not
actively considering a promotion or a raise, because that's just gonna help you
to constantly refocus and recalibrate your goals. Just make sure you're keeping
track of your accomplishments and examples of your progress and success,
because nobody else will. Number 4: Show where you're going beyond your current role.
In addition to keeping track of how you're meeting or exceeding
expectations of your role, you can also identify things that you're doing
outside of your responsibilities that are adding value to the company. So maybe
you're doing some extra work that's outside of your job description, or
you're taking on responsibilities already that somebody a level above you
should have. Both of these things can help you make a strong case for a
promotion or a raise because you're showing that you're actually
contributing more and adding more value than you might be getting compensated
for. Again, anywhere that you can have specific data or examples of your
accomplishments and your work is going to help you here.
Number 5: Find out your company's promotion process. Every company is a little bit different, so
find out what your company's process is for giving promotions and raises. For
example, my company does promotions twice a year:
once in the fall and once in the spring. We also have individuals submit their own
promotion cases that they work on with their manager, or with other mentors they
might have in the business. So maybe your company does promotions once a year, or
maybe it's just on a case-by-case basis. Just find out, talk to HR, or talk to
your manager to understand what the actual process is. There might also be a
specific rubric with a list of things that your employer is looking for when
they are promoting someone from one specific role to another. But don't feel
like you need to wait until you're actually ready to ask for a promotion in
order to get this information. This is stuff that you can get in advance, and
having it in advance will just help you be prepared and help you set yourself up
for success in the future. Number 6: Know your company's salary structure.
On a similar note, every company probably has a general or
average salary structure for their roles, and you're gonna want to know that if
you're asking for a raise in particular. Usually, there are different levels in an
organization and different base salaries for each of those levels, of
course with a range, because depending on how you're developing within that role
you might be earning a higher salary than someone with the same title. So get
that information and it can help you understand and determine if maybe you
should be asking for a raise for the work that you're doing in your role.
Number 7: Research your market value. In addition to understanding the pay
structure within your organization, you should also know what people are getting
paid on average for your role at other organizations. I usually find this data
on Glassdoor. They have information on average salaries for people with a
certain title, in a certain location, etc. so that's a super helpful tool that you
can use. This is also something you should do when you're interviewing for a
role and giving your required salary or desired salary, because that can just
help you make sure you're getting paid the proper amount for that role. Some
things that take into consideration with this are location, so people who work in
New York are going to be getting paid a lot more than people in many other
cities in the United States just because the cost of living in New York is so
much higher. the size of the organization is also a big factor, so larger
organizations will probably have higher salaries on average than smaller
organizations. So just keep some of those things in mind when you're looking into
this information and presenting any numbers for a salary
or for a raise. Number 8: Leverage counter offers carefully. Let's say you're
working at a company and you want to get a raise, and you actually also have a job
offer where they're going to pay you more than you're getting paid now. You
can definitely use that information to your advantage to try and get a raise,
but just be careful with how you position it. You don't want to make it
seem like you're giving this ultimatum to your employer, but instead something
more like, "Hey, you know, I have this other offer on the table, but I really enjoy
working here and want to invest in and be committed to this company - so just
hoping that we can work something out." You're much more likely to get a
positive response that way, because if you already seem like you have a foot
out the door, and you're just kind of using this offer to get more money, then
your employer can probably just find somebody to replace you really easily. So
if you do have a counter offer, then you can absolutely leverage that, but just
make sure you're being thoughtful about it and using it as a tool and not as a
threat, and that'll just be better for your relationship with your employer in
the long run. Number 9: Be creative. If it makes sense, depending on your
company's actual process for doing promotions and raises, be creative with
your promotion case. Maybe you're a graphic designer at an agency - then
create a cool infographic to show your accomplishments. When I put myself up for
promotion about a year and a half ago, I made a "draw my life" style video where I
used a whiteboard to talk through my accomplishments and why I felt I should
be getting a promotion. So if it makes sense, if it's relevant, if it works with
your company's promotion process and all of that, then why not be creative and
find a way to stand out? And Number 10: If you don't get what you asked for,
find out what you can do to change that in the future. The worst thing that can
happen if you ask for a promotion or a raise is they say, "No." But if they do say
no, then at least you're on the radar and you're making it clear, you're making it
known that you want to be considered for a promotion, and that you have the drive
and motivation for it. So ask what you can do to be successful, and again, go
back to your goals, go back to your focus areas, and make the changes that you need
so you can be ready the next time around. That's it for this video, I really hope
it was helpful and if you have any tips for getting a promotion or a raise, then
please leave them in the comments below so we can all just help each other out.
I'm always working on a bunch of different video ideas, but if you have
requests for videos and content in the future, then leave those in the comments
as well. Again, hope you enjoyed the video. As always, thank you so much for watching
and I will see you in the next one. Bye!