Asking for a raise: How to prepare & improve your chances of success

Seeking advancement in our careers is an entirely normal part of climbing the corporate ladder. However, we often believe that for us to progress, it must be given, and the very thought of asking for advancement is treated as a taboo.

Whether this advancement comes in the form of a promotion or a raise, individuals often feel that having a blatant discussion with their employer or manager about money or promotion is out of their comfort zone. In a perfect corporate world, your seniors would notice and reward your accomplishments with a raise/promotion, but sadly this is rarely the case which is why we must take matters into our own hands. Asking for a raise can be a daunting prospect for some, so we’ve created this article full of tips on preparing and improving your chances of success to help you secure an advancement.

Research The Average Salary For Your Position

Although it may seem obvious, it’s imperative that you research the average salary for your position so that your request is well-informed, backed up with evidence and within reason. Conducting research and determining the market value for your current or proposed role is crucial for anyone asking their employer for a raise so that you can suggest a reasonable amount that won’t get you laughed out of the meeting room.

Carefully investigate the average salary by industry or average salary in the UK for professionals with similar job roles, qualifications and job content by using sites like Check-a-Salary. The site’s salary information is compiled from all jobs advertised in the UK giving its users more comprehensive salary information than the job boards. Peruse their website for a range of informative resources on how to earn more and improve your job prospects, including assistance with your CV, job alerts and a salary calculator, which can estimate the average salary by location or job title to increase your chance of success when asking for a raise.

Share Your Accomplishments

As we touched upon in the introduction, our employers would automatically recognise and reward our accomplishments in a perfect world. But with a large workforce competing for your manager’s attention plus their own workload to manage, it can be difficult for superiors to pay as much attention to us as we’d like.  Therefore, sharing our accomplishments early and often is necessary to prepare and improve our chances of a successful raise.

Ensure that you constantly over-achieve your manager’s expectations, always put yourself forward for more work and complete any tasks asked of you to the best of your abilities and before the deadline if possible. Once you’ve completed these tasks, always be sure to communicate your success to your manager. When you eventually approach them with plans for your career advancement, they are more likely to agree with your request since you’ve already demonstrated that you possess the relative skills needed for a better salary/title and proved that to your manager.

Practice Makes Perfect

Another way to prepare and improve your likelihood of success when asking for a raise is by practising your intended speech and preparing for any questions that you may receive. Thoroughly rehearsing your pitch will help you present your proposal and ensure it flows correctly while covering all your points with no unnecessary waffle.

Chances are you’re going to have a limited window of time to deliver your speech and rehearsing can ensure that you don’t make any mistakes, reduce your nerves and prepare you for what the real thing will be like. Role-playing all the potential outcomes, whether positive or negative, will prepare you for any questions your superior may have and allow you to formulate rebuttals that will make the scenario easier overall and give you more confidence in yourself.

Focus On Your Performance And Not Personal Reasons

There are many reasons people ask for career advancement, whether performance-related or not. Ultimately, you’ll want to pitch to your superior why you deserve a raise, using work-based evidence, as this is what will convince them to agree with your request since management look to reward employees based on performance.

You may have other non-work-related reasons for needing a raise, be it that you’ve got a new baby on the way or your rent has increased; however, these will not look like valid reasons for a raise in the eyes of your employer. Instead, focus on showing your superior how you have benefitted the company, your achievements and the value you bring to the organisation – this is what will make you stick out and appear like a more rewardable candidate.

Have A Back-Up Proposal

At the end of the day, if you don’t ask, then you don’t receive, but just because you’ve asked doesn’t mean you’ll get an automatic yes. You might leave your meeting with a no – if this is the case, don’t get discouraged and have a backup proposal to present. Instead, ask your superior how you can work towards a raise and the steps you can put in place to reach your desired position/salary —showing your employer that you’re passionate about your career and putting you in a position for an increase sooner.

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