By Prisca Aroko.
As Jim Rohn says, we all want to be paid by the hour but in real sense we all get paid by what value we put in per the hour we are working. Many companies do reviews each and every year and determine if there is an employee who deserves a salary increment and to others companies, it takes an employee’s initiative to ask for a pay increment.
So should you fall in the latter category, this is how you ought to request for a salary increment as discussed on Family Radio’s Tuesday’s morning show by James Okumu and a HR Consultant.
Majorly people use common personal issues to ask for a salary increment. These include marital concerns, family issues, investments, and further studies.
Rather than using personal reasons, pitch yourself as an investment to the company. What you will help the company achieve because at the end of such a negotiation, both the employee and the company should have a win-win situation.
Steve Oloo, a HR Consultant explains that before you ask for a salary increment, ask if you have been able to deliver in your duties. Sometimes an employee thinks that because he or she has been working the longest for a company that they automatically deserve a salary rise.
This however is not the case. Ensure that you have been doing your assignments and have an impeccable performance at work.
Secondly, ensure that you know the company’s financial stability. Its pointless asking for an increase yet the company is planning on downsizing.
Another key thing to have in mind before asking for a salary increase is not to complain while asking for it. For example, as an employee, you should never use reasons such as ‘I work overtime’ or ‘I have been coming in early and leaving the office very late’. These reasons are considered as complains while as an employee that is what is requested from your own growth and the company’s growth.
However Steve Oloo explains that an employer should not wait for an individual to ask for a hike but rather motivate the employee by yearly reviewing salaries.
Oloo also cautions employees on having a fixed mind on specific amount that you may want and advises one to have a flexible mind that can create room for negotiations on what you want and what the company can offer.
