Ever wonder how to ask for a job promotion without being uncomfortable? Money isn’t necessarily something most people, regardless of age, like to discuss, but, for those looking for a well-deserved salary increase or more responsibilities at work, being hesitant in asking for a job promotion may lead to you seeing the job offered to someone else.
Since the best way to ask for a job promotion is to be proactive, not reactive, we’re giving a few tips you need to know about. Take these steps to prepare for and pitch your boss on promoting you and your chances for getting that new title, office, raise and job will increase exponentially.
They Don’t Care About You… At First
As you prepare your pitch to your employer for a promotion, remember that management isn’t going to be interested in you until you review the position with them and remind them of its importance to the company.
Before you start presenting your personal skills and experience, you’ll do better to begin your pitch by telling your superiors that you understand how the position fits into the company, how it affects the other departments, what goals the company has for the position and how it improves the company’s bottom line. This shows that you understand the job and will be able to take ownership of it. It will also give you the opportunity to demonstrate that you have the skills and experience necessary for each of the facets of the job they just agreed were important. During your talk, the interview might add some of the company’s expectations for the position, and that will give you more opportunity to present your specific skills in those areas.
Research The Position You Want The Promotion To
Start your promotion pitch plan by learning everything you can about the position. Don’t just focus on the position at your company, either. Look at job boards to see what other companies consider the major responsibilities for that job. Ask your friends at other companies if they’ll introduce you to the person at their company who has the job you want with your company. This will help you get tips for what’s really important for the role, and might even get you some new tips for things your company could be doing.
Want To Create A New Position?
If you’re at a small company that’s understaffed and needs a new manager or director of an area, consider asking your boss to create that job for you. But, remember, you’ll need to present how the new position will impact the company, usually at the bottom-line level. This means you’ll have to prove you can pay for yourself many times over. Do this by demonstrating how the new position will either increase sales or cut costs — such as eliminating the expense of a contractor.
Prepare For Objections To Your Promotion Request
List the possible objections that management might have when hearing you out when asking for a promotion. Some of these may include the following:
- We don’t have the money
- We need to give it to someone who’s been with the company longer
- We’re doing fine without the position
- We can use a contractor
There are no canned answers for these objections. You’ll have to show that these objections are excuses, not reasons, at your company. For example, if the company says they don’t have the money, show how much money the company will save or earn by giving you the job and how soon the company will recover its investment in you.
Organize Your Presentation
Before you ask for a job promotion, your presentation be top-notch. It should have a strong opening that states why the company will do better financially if you’re promoted or it creates a new position for you. You’ll then need to present the facts that support your intro. You’ll need to finish by restating your opening pitch — that the company will do better if it promotes you.
Start the facts section of your presentation with the company’s current situation and how you could improve things. Talk about how much better the company will be one year and three years from now by hiring you. Be specific. This is where you can present ideas for what you’d bring that’s new to the position.
Once you’ve made management think about the position, present your credentials for the job. In addition to your technical skills, present your soft business skills, too. Quite often, promotions and new positions are just waiting to be filled by busy managers or HR staff. Create a plan for getting that job you want and you’ll be more likely to get it and all the benefits that come with it.
Lead image via Getty