When I started with my company, I was one of three project managers. It was a small startup and the work hours were brutal.
After 18 months one project manager left and they hadn’t yet hired her replacement. The other project manager and I were struggling with a crushing workload in an all male company. We bonded over our shared frustrations with the job and culture and soon realized that we both made $49K and hadn’t received a raise in the last two year.
The other project manager and I were both approached by a competitor looking to poach us. After some deliberation, I decided that I wasn’t ready to leave my company because I was dedicated to the growth and the vision that they had, even though I was struggling with the current situation.
The other project manager took the position, put in her notice, and I was about to be the only one left in the department. The company was actively looking to hire replacements but I knew that there would be a few months where I was the only person handling the work load of three people.
Sensing my frustration (and stress) my boss invited me out for happy hour drinks one evening. I knew that he would ask me how I felt about the current situation and I wanted to come prepared.
How did you approach the promotion negotiation with your boss?
I didn’t have a lot of time to prep for drinks, but I knew that I wanted to be brutally honest with my manager, without having it be an unproductive venting session.
By putting myself in his position, I realized that he was terrified of losing me. If I left, there would be no project managers, which is a problem for a startup with aggressive growth goals.
“Having been approached by recruiters, I knew I was marketable and I was in a position to ask for something big. I just needed to be clear and firm with what I wanted.”
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How did you discuss a promotion with your boss?
Once we sat down he kicked off our talk by asking how I was doing. I felt like I had been pushed to a point and I couldn’t hold back anymore. My feedback was blunt.
I told my manager that the same company had approached me but I wanted to be a loyal employee. I truly believed in the vision of the company. Even though I wanted to stay, the situation right now wasn’t going to work. I had been loyal to them and now I needed them to be loyal to me.
Without hesitation I said that I wanted a raise to $70K and 1K in shares. I wanted to have a stake in the growth of the company. I also told him that I wanted to hire the two replacements and run the project management department as it grew.
The raise was bold – I was asking for a 43% increase. But I knew I deserved it and I knew that they needed me more than I needed them.
He didn’t push back at all and said he would discuss it with the CEO.
Did your boss agree to the promotion?
My boss came back a few days later with my raise. They had given me more than what I asked for. He offered me a raise to $75K, the shares I had asked for, and a promotion to completely build and run the project management department.
I honestly couldn’t believe it. They didn’t even question what I was asking for and they came back with more. I felt like I had really been heard and I was valued.
What promotion negotation advice do you have for others?
Be vocal about what you want
I could have been less direct and hoped that they gave me a raise or some other sort of bonus. I could have used the time with my manager to vent and talk about all of the things that I hated. But I used this time strategically.
A raise is what I wanted. A big one. And I didn’t want to waste this moment.
Use a rationale the other person can appreciate
I dropped “loyalty” into the conversation as much as I possibly could. Working for a tech startup where turnover is high, I knew that loyalty was something the management team deeply valued.
I didn’t want them to see me as someone who just wants to make a quick buck and jump to a new job. Signaling to them that I was in this journey with them meant I was part of the team.
That was a more compelling argument than just focusing on how great I was or the current state of our department. They appreciate loyalty even more than talent. Knowing that helped me present my ask in the strongest way possible.
Need to a little help taking the next steps to negotiate with your boss?
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