How to Negotiate a Salary Increase

When seeking a salary increase, it’s crucial to approach your employer prepared. Going into the negotiation without adequate knowledge and research may lead to an unfavorable outcome. Understanding the market value of your position, quantifying your impact on the company, and defining your desired terms are all key elements for a successful negotiation.

Consider your timing.

🔴 Does your company have a salary review process? If so, this should guide you on what steps to take and whether you would be considered for a raise yet.

🔴 Has the company made recent redundancies or budget cuts, perhaps you know that sales have taken a dip recently? If so, now is probably not the right time to ask but you can prepare for when it is.

🔴 Likewise, if the company is on a hiring spree or has recently made promotions – this may be a sign that they could have the budget for salary increases.

Understand your value.

To negotiate a pay rise from a strong position, you must be able to demonstrate your contribution to the success of the company. Note down:

🔴 Key achievements and how they have benefited the business.

🔴 Recent training or qualifications you have completed.

🔴 Responsibilities you have taken on outside your normal role.

🔴 Ways in which you have demonstrated initiative, bought the company new business or saved costs.

If you’ve failed to deliver something or perform as expected in the months before your request, you may be on the back foot before you begin. It’s also important to understand that an increase rarely comes without extra responsibilities or targets – be prepared as to whether you can or would want to take these on.

Do your research.

🔴 Discuss with trusted industry peers, friends, or family who work in the same sector or role.

🔴 Research current job opportunities that have salaries listed online.

🔴 Have a confidential chat with a specialist recruiter in your field for salary benchmarks.

🔴 Take a look at current salary reports for your sector.

🔴 Try to find out what benefits your competitors offer – for example, you may get an extra 3% elsewhere but they might not offer other perks you currently get.

Keep it professional.

An employer won’t take your financial situation into account – your salary review should purely be about the value of your contribution to the organisation you work for not your personal expenses.

Consider the full package and think about alternative benefits.

There are many ways businesses reward staff beyond salary, so it’s important to weigh these up in case the negotiations don’t go as you wanted. If you can’t get a monetary increase, have in mind something else that will benefit you, such as:

🔴 Additional bonuses or higher % commission.

🔴 Flexible working hours.

🔴 Higher leave allowance.

🔴 Job title change.

🔴 More comprehensive medical insurance or coverage for family members.

🔴 Allowance for training.

🔴 Car, Petrol, or Travel allowance.