My senior negotiated for a raise and it worked

July 26, 2008 · Filed Under General · Comment 

I work in a University. The job is good and I enjoy its benefits and the great salary. But when its time for a raise, we have to negotiate for it and put across the board since the university is funded by the state. The raise is not tied to any performance whatsoever. I have accepted it until I saw my senior negotiating for the raise by himself.

The first step that my senior took was that he had to challenge the whole system. He found that there was a title change in the university that had a higher compensation range. He did a careful planning before bringing up the subject of the pay during his performance review. He showed examples of his strength, cited highly successful projects in which he had been involved and illustrated his value in front of the board members.

While negotiating for the raise, he was careful of few things which he didn’t want to show in front of others because it could have hurt his chances of getting the raise.

He didn’t show up his cost of living because everyone has similar situations/problems. And therefore, everyone cannot get the raise.

He didn’t show the number of years that he worked in this university, so he is entitled to it.

He didn’t compare his work with others, because he was presenting his individual picture.

He can make a higher amount if he goes to some other place.

After a thoughtful review of his negotiating capabilities, the board members agreed with his self assessment and suggested for a title change. He was going through a tight budget and realized that there is no other way to get the increase in pay. My senior had done good research ahead of time and he knew that it was a nice opportunity to accept the proposal.

My senior found out that his promotion will be granted for the 2008 fiscal year. From next year onwards, he is going to get the negotiated raise and his increased salary due to the title change.

I learnt a good lesson: it’s always good to know the system of your place of employment before meeting your boss for the raise. It’s wrong to assume that the system is the same everywhere. My senior did a careful planning before challenging the whole system rather than asking for something that can’t be always granted.

Performance is the key factor. It’s important to show your capabilities with specific examples. Everyone in the job shows their performance but you have to do something exceptionally good to stand out. Your individual value should have the impact on the growth of the business. Your chances of negotiation will be better if you keep away the “negative reasons” of entitlement, comparison, or personal needs.

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