Five top tips on negotiating pay & promotion with Travers Smith
Last month, we teamed up with Travers Smith, a leading full-service UK law firm, to equip our community with the negotiation skills you need to navigate challenging conversations about:
- Salary increases
- Good negotiations
- Job promotions
You can watch the recording of the session HERE.
Asking for a pay rise or promotion can be daunting, but hands up if you’ve said, “I don’t get paid enough for this” under your breathe?
Let’s get real, if you genuinely believe you deserve a pay rise/promotion, it’s time to put on your negotiation hat and get to it. However, read these top tips from Travers Smith first, they’re both practical and insightful…
First things first, something to note is that a successful, effective negotiation is walking away with a good deal, and the person you’re negotiating with walking away with the same.
Don’t wait for an annual appraisal or review to ask for a pay rise:
You can raise the issue of pay or promotion at any time. There’s no ‘perfect’ moment to ask for a pay rise. However, there are some moments that are better, for example:
- After a successful project that you were heavily involved in.
- Finding out the end of your company’s financial year and when budgets for the next year will be discussed. This is a good time to set up a meeting with your line manager.
- If you’ve recently been asked to take on more responsibility.
Always keep a track record of notable work & results!
Over the course of your time at the company, create a list of your key achievements, and focus on the areas that are important to your line manager (and company). This is key for when negotiating both a pay rise and/or promotion.
Find out what your manager’s concerns are (if any):
You may not get the pay rise or promotion the first time around, but use this as a learning opportunity to find out your manager’s/company concerns. This could open up some rooms for improvement for the next time you negotiate.
Discuss what the next steps look like:
It’s highly unlikely that your manager will give you an immediate decision. It’s also possible they may not even be the one to make the decision. Ask your manager for clear next steps. Will there be a follow-up meeting? Will you receive an email? Will you have to present it to a higher rank?
Look at the financial health of the business:
Looking at the businesses’ financial health will help determine if it is the right time to ask, what is ‘too much’, and what is realistic.
Research roles in the same sector and similar companies and get an idea of what you should be asking for.
“An unrealistic high negotiation can kill the negotiation,” going too high can damage your credibility.
A couple of honourable mentions:
- Discuss what new areas you can move in to: More money, more responsibility.
- Avoid using ‘why’ when asking for feedback: Be polite and assertive, but not aggressive or confrontational.
In the words of our friends at Travers Smith, always have a Plan B.
If you accept an offer that you want, amazing! If it’s not what you wanted, but close enough, think about some other non-monetary benefits you can negotiate. If it’s not what you wanted, it’s okay to decline.
Whatever happens, if you’re happy to stay, stay. If you’re 100% not happy, maybe it’s time to consider moving on.
Alternatively, put a date in your diary and present your case again within the next year.
We’d love to know how your negotiations go. Drop us a DM at @thisisysys across Twitter & Instagram.
Thank you to our community in attendance, our speakers and Chris Edwards, CSR & Diversity Director at Travers Smith for making the event a success. We look forward to further collaborating and creating awesome opportunities for YSYS 2023 Mission.
