​How to know when it’s time to move on…

If you’re sitting in the office at work, and someone was to ask if you were happy in your current role, you’d likely fall in to one of 3 main types;

Happy– your role is fulfilling; nothing will make you leave.

Content–you are open to discussing new opportunities, but it would need to tick all the boxes on your wish list before you would entertain a new role.

Unhappy– You are actively looking for a new role, either you are:

• Desperate to leave

  – your job is not satisfying, you don’t get along with your manager, you don’t enjoy the company culture, basically you want out as soon as possible.

• Wanting to make a career move

  – it’s time to progress, develop your skillset and make more money.

So, if you align with the ‘actively looking for a new role’, then this blog series is for you.

What do you need to do first?

If it’s growth or more money you are after, it’s time to have a meeting to discuss your future with your company.

Before scheduling a sit-down, have a self-review of your performance over the past 6 months. Are you meeting the requirements of your current role? Have you been hitting all your KPI’s? Knowing how you are performing will determine how you have the conversation with your employer. If you are under-performing, then asking for more money or more responsibility might not be the way to progress. If you are overperforming, you can use this as evidence to justify salary or responsibility increases.

Salary increase. The first step is rather simple – what is the market rate for your skillset and experience? Are you being paid above or below the market rate? Do your research and understand what you are worth.

Increased responsibility. If your motivators are around career progression and additional responsibilities; you need to think about what this looks like. Will you need to be upskilled and put on specific courses to gain the necessary qualifications? Put together a plan and timeframe and decide what is most important as to you.

Once you’ve found out what you are worth and how you would like your career to progress, it’s time to sit down with your employer. 

The right way and the wrong way

The wrong way – go in guns blazing and demand a salary increase and a promotion. This immediately sets you up to fail. I’ve seen many very talented people go this route and greatly regret it. Now, that doesn’t mean that throwing your toys out the pram won’t get you a promotion or a pay increase, but down the line it will hamper real career progression and have a negative effect; more specifically – the relationship with your manager and the way you are perceived within the business. 

The right way – give your manager or boss a heads up that you want to have a proper conversation on regarding your performance and future prospects. This allows your manager to prepare for discussions on promotions and salary increases, rather than being blindsided. At Aspect Personnel we have quarterly career conversations to ensure that learning and your career progression is regularly on the agenda.

Go in with a plan – talk through your strengths and weaknesses. Explain that you want to be part of the business long term and that you are ready to step up. Explain your research and the course you might need to take and the benefits for the business. Along with the opportunity to step up, mention that you would greatly appreciate recognition in the form of a salary increase.

Salary discussions. Now this is where you should go in with a number in mind, but if you can, let your employer make the first offer – they may surprise you and offer you an increase higher than you expected.

Having market data on current salaries for your role will pay dividends and let your employer know that you’re taking this very seriously. Push the boundaries when it comes to salary negotiations but proceed with caution – if you’ve done the homework and understand the financial position of the organisation, you should understand what figure is deemed as ‘acceptable’ without appearing arrogant. If you can come to an agreement on salary that you’re happy with, then mission accomplished!

Likewise, if you get the promotion or the up skilling you desire, ensure that you have concrete timeframes in place and written confirmation from your employer. Written confirmation is essential – it’s a promise of their investment in you.

What if it’s a ‘No’

So, no promotion, no upskilling and no salary increase or even worse, broken promises. What do you do?

Firstly, understand the why – sometimes the opportunity may simply not exist, maybe your performance hasn’t been up to scratch, there could be a myriad of reasons why a pay rise or promotion is not available immediately.

But, if you feel like you are getting the brush off, or you can’t get a career progression plan in writing; then it could be time to start the hunt for a new job.