- JPMorgan’s David Kelly said US workers have been too timid when it comes to asking for raises.
- One career advisor suggests you create a “brag sheet” to outline your accomplishments.
- Experts also recommend doing research on pay, knowing your worth, and leveraging tech for raises.
A top Wall Street exec thinks most of us need to get better about asking for a raise.
David Kelly, the chief global strategist at JPMorgan Asset Management, told Bloomberg that many US workers appear timid when going to their employer for more money — even though there are some 8 million job openings across the country.
“Everybody knows it’s hard to find a good employee,” he said.
Kelly said that, in some cases, discussions about layoffs can make workers believe it’s not a good time to ask for a boost.
“It’s good messaging from these companies,” he said, adding, “There’s nothing like announcing prospective layoffs to quiet down the labor force.”
So, if you’re thinking it’s time for a bump, here are four tips from workplace experts on how to talk with your boss.
Keep a record of your wins
It’s easy to lose track of all the things you’ve accomplished at work, especially as the months roll by. Jasmine Escalera, a career expert with MyPerfectResume, recommends that workers keep a “brag sheet” of the major contributions they’ve made in their role and to their team — and on behalf of their manager and the organization.
“What are the top things that really showcase the impact that you’ve made?” she said.
Escalera said it doesn’t have to be an exhaustive list. She added that if there are smaller accomplishments that don’t warrant being mentioned in a discussion over compensation, they could serve as the basis for asking a client or a colleague for a LinkedIn endorsement.
Keeping a list can also help identify when it might be time to ask for an increase in compensation or a heftier title, even outside an annual review cycle, Escalera said.
Too often, she said, workers shy away from discussing their achievements because they want to avoid the appearance of bragging.
“We stop ourselves from self-promotion because we think it’s bad, but self-promotion is the breadcrumbs that lead to the titles and the promotions and the pay raises,” Escalera said.
Know your financial worth
One way to feel less uneasy about promoting ourselves is to have a sense of what others in similar roles at other organizations are earning.
Having that data on hand can appeal to many bosses’ desire to be competitive in the marketplace and even to live up to the values the organization espouses, Maria Ross, who researches empathy and is the author of the book “The Empathy Dilemma,” told BI.
She said workers who have information about pay rates at other organizations and who have deep knowledge about the state of their employer’s business are likely to fare better in a discussion about pay.
Ross suggested people should consider how getting a raise might benefit the organization. A hike in pay might come with added responsibility or taking on some of your boss’s work. Or, she said, if you get a promotion, that could create an opening for someone to move into your old role.
“How can you frame the ask as a benefit to the organization?” Ross said.
Don’t make it an easy ‘no’
Often, workers consider themselves lucky to have a job. While that might be true, the organization can also be lucky to have you, Julie Smith, author of the book “Coach Yourself Confident,” told BI.
“It’s kind of a scary thing to ask, ‘Do you think I’m worth more?'” she said.
Smith said the discussion over a bump in pay might end up spilling into more than one conversation — and that’s OK. That’s because, sometimes, raising the topic of a pay increase can prompt a busy boss to pay more attention to all of the things you’re doing.
She said that instead of asking for a raise immediately, you might benefit from asking your boss to consider a pay bump, or that your boss brings it up with senior leaders or HR.
The one-off ask can make it easier for your boss to say “no,” Smith said.
It can also be helpful to ask others at your job who are ahead of you how they asked for a raise and what steps they took to advance.
“How did it go down?” she said. “What can I take from that?”
Smith also suggested that you practice asking aloud before the conversation with your boss. You might prepare with a friend. It doesn’t have to be a full-on role-play, Smith said. Yet hearing yourself make your case can help you edit out apologetic phrases that can creep in and can help you get a sense of how your statements come across.
“Don’t say the words out loud for the first time with your boss,” she said.
Show you’re keeping up
Many employers are investing in artificial intelligence tools with the goal of improving productivity and efficiency. If you can, learn how to use this technology so you can boost your own productivity — and your value to the business, Ger Doyle, country manager for the staffing firm ManpowerGroup US, told BI.
He said workers who are thinking about how they can use tech — including, in some cases, an AI copilot — to do their jobs more effectively and efficiently will look good in the eyes of the boss.
“How do you use that copilot to make your job more effective, make your department more effective, make the company more effective?” Doyle said.
