如何回应员工加工资
One of your direct reports wants more money. He says he’s underpaid. Or he thinks he’s doing work above his current title. Whether or not you hold the purse strings for your team or organization, this is a tough situation for managers. How should you respond?
What the Experts Say
No matter who’s making the request, your star performer or an average one, you’re likely to feel taken aback or annoyed at being put in this position. Most managers do, says Dick Grote, performance management consultant and author of How to Be Good at Performance Appraisals. That’s because compensation is rarely a straightforward issue, says Karen Dillon, author of the HBR Guide to Office Politics. “As a manager, you’re starting with an impressionist painting of how people are paid and whether it’s fair,” she says. “Also, it’s rare that giving the raise is entirely up to you — and there are a hundred things you have to account for. With a decision like this, there are always ripple effects.” Here’s how to carefully navigate the conversation to get the best possible outcome for you, the employee, and your company.
Don’t react right away
If you’re like most people, your first instinct will be to say whether you think the employee merits a raise or not: “You totally deserve this!” or “Are you insane?” But bite your tongue. “There’s actually very little you can say in the moment,” Grote says. “There’s nothing to gain from saying no right away, and you can’t say yes without checking with your boss or HR first.” Resist the urge to say something like “It’s not up to me” or “I can’t decide that,” which undermines your authority. And watch your facial expressions and body language as well as your words. “Don’t look angry, resistant, or irritated, even if you feel that way,” adds Dillon.
Ask for more information
Your first reaction, regardless of whether you think the employee deserves the raise, should be curiosity. Grote suggests a “simple, three-word sentence”: Tell me more. “It indicates you’re not dismissing the request, and it gives you more information about where the person is coming from,” he says. Take notes while the person tells you why she deserves the pay increase. “Nothing communicates ‘I’m taking you seriously’ more than writing things down.” Ask follow-up questions as necessary, he adds. “The objective is to get enough information that you can then explore whether it’s an appropriate request.” Remaining neutral, explain that you will look into the matter: “Thanks for bringing this to my attention. I want to give it careful consideration. I’ll get back to you within two weeks.” You want to “buy yourself as much time as you can” to do research and talk to the appropriate people, says Dillon.
Acknowledge the person’s courage
“This is an emotionally loaded conversation,” says Grote. “As awkward as it feels to you, it feels five times more so for the direct report.” There’s typically a lot of thought and agonizing that precedes a raise request, and no matter how “hard-charging or blunt the person asking may seem,” chances are they’re feeling vulnerable, says Dillon. So even if you’re irritated, acknowledge that what they’re doing takes courage. “The person is giving you the opportunity to retain them, rather than going out and finding another job,” Grote says. So you should also “be grateful.”
Be attuned to less-direct requests
“Not everyone will come out and say they want a raise. They might drop hints about how hard they’ve been working or even mention that a head hunter called them,” warns Dillon. Take these indirect signals seriously. Some people don’t feel comfortable making a direct ask (and women are far less likely to ask for a raise than men), and you don’t want to lose someone valuable. “It’s smart to pay attention to these hints, maybe even ask some follow-up questions, especially if you think the person might be a flight risk,” she says. Dillon once had a direct report who showed up to work in a suit and tie, much more formal than his usual attire. He made an excuse, but she knew he’d been on a job interview. “It made me think about what I needed to do to keep him around, and I considered a raise,” she says.
Evaluate the arguments
Once you’ve ended the initial conversation, it’s on you to figure out what to do. Grote says that an appropriate request is one where “the individual can demonstrate that her compensation and her value are not correlated, or, in simple terms, her pay is out of whack with what she deserves.” Think about both internal equity (Is the person paid fairly, compared with her peers?) and the open market (Does a person doing this job in another company get similar pay?). Gather as much information you can, such as salary data for your industry. Dillon says you should also consider how important the person is to you, your team, and the company. “Think about the individual’s career trajectory. You want to reward and promote on a challenging pace and keep them hungry to improve,” she says.
Know the limits
Some arguments for increased pay just don’t hold water. “It should not be because the person needs more money or feels he’s the best person in the department,” says Grote. And the request shouldn’t be based on a short-term effort. “Just because someone’s killed themselves on a special project doesn’t mean they deserve more. Don’t confuse a heroic sprint with consistent high performance over time,” says Dillon. Certainly, such work does deserve reward and recognition, but you can give a one-time bonus, allow the person to attend a prestigious conference, or provide extra time off. “There’s a toolbox full of things you can give an employee that say, ‘I value you,’ that don’t necessarily end up as more money on her monthly paycheck,” says Dillon.
You also have to keep in mind that there is a limit to how much you can pay someone in a certain position. “Jobs have value independent of the performer. If that person wants to make more money, they may have to take on a different kind of job, ideally within your organization,” says Grote.
Talk to the right people
Talk to your boss and HR to get more information about your organization’s compensation system and the fairness of the person’s current salary. You might say, for example, “I was talking to Sean, and he specifically asked me for a raise. I said that I needed to explore whether that’s appropriate, and I’m hoping you can help me figure out whether it is.” Grote says the advantage of doing this is that you “shift the responsibility to the expert to tell you whether the request is appropriate.” Be prepared though. It may not always be a straightforward answer. Grote says that while many large corporations have clear guidelines, most other companies don’t. “The firms smaller than the GMs of the world and larger than the mom-and-pops may not even have an HR person. Managers are struggling to figure this out.”
Go to bat
“If you have a good performer and you’re concerned about retention, you want to go to bat for that person,” says Grote. Dillon points out that it’s often easy for the HR team to say no, especially since they don’t know the employee as well as you do. Try to make it as easy as possible for those gatekeepers to say yes. “I learned over the years to not take no for an answer. I’ve had to get creative and take money from one place to use it for the raise,” she says. Make your case clearly and back up your arguments with as much information as you’ve got. “They have to believe that you’re making an objective decision, and that you’re not going to come back the next day and ask for a raise for another team member,” says Dillon.
Delivering good news
If you’re able to grant the raise, you might be tempted to go back and say, “I’ve got great news. We’re giving you the money!” or “You’re right that you’re underpaid. You’ll see the increase in your next paycheck.” But both Dillon and Grote say that would be a mistake. If word gets out that “the way you can get a raise is simply by asking for one, you’re going to have a line outside your door,” warns Grote. Instead, explain that you shared the request with HR and management, that everyone carefully researched and discussed whether the raise was warranted, and that you collectively decided to raise their pay. “At the end of the entire process, you want the person to feel that they earned it by demonstrating their value, not begging for more money,” says Grote. You might even ask him to continue demonstrating his value by further broadening the scope of his role. After all, says Dillon, the point is “to help them grow and continue to add value to the company.”
Delivering bad news
If you’re not able to grant the raise, don’t mince words. Come right out and say it: “I have some bad news for you.” Grote suggests making clear what research you, HR, or your boss did, so that the person understands her request was taken seriously: “We looked at how your pay compares with people here in the company and in the outside market, and we found that your pay is appropriate. For that reason, we’re not going to make any changes in your compensation.” Try to demystify the process for them. “For most people, compensation is a black box,” Grote explains. “You can do a great service for your people by telling them how it works” at your company. At the same time, “don’t make them feel bad for asking,” says Dillon. And don’t say negative things about the person or their performance.
When you disagree…
Telling a direct report that they’re not getting a raise is especially tricky if you disagree with the decision. You can go back to those who made the call, explain again why you think the increase is merited, and ask them to help you understand where you’re off base. But if the answer stands, you have no choice but to “suck it up and deliver the unfortunate news to your direct report,” says Grote. “In a leadership position, you’re always going to have to deal with people’s disappointment.” And don’t try to throw your superiors under the bus. Grote suggests you say, “We took your request very seriously. I’ve determined that your compensation is appropriate.” Be sure to highlight how much you appreciate the person and his contributions, so he’s still motivated to go back and get his work done.
Chart a path forward
When you’ve had to deny the request, consider explaining to the person how she might increase her value and earn a future raise. “Give concrete things to do over the next six months so you can have the conversation again,” says Dillon. Don’t make any promises, but do follow through on the timeline you’ve laid out. Dillon says she once told a strong performer on her team that she would review his raise request three months after she initially denied it, but then “completely forgot” about the conversation. “When four-and-a-half months later he told me that he was leaving for another job, I tried to scramble to get him what he wanted, but it was too little, too late,” she says.
Principles to Remember
Do:
- Treat the person with respect throughout the process, even if you think a raise is undeserved
- Acknowledge the courage it took to make the request
- Press your manager or HR to grant an increase for someone you believe deserves it
Don’t:
- Say yes or no right away; instead, ask for more information
- Grant the request without making clear that it was earned and that you now have higher expectations for the person
- Try to blame your inability to grant the request on higher-ups: take responsibility even when you disagree with the decision
Case Study #1: Explain the reasons behind the “no”
Carl Samson is a project manager at a construction company in Minneapolis (names and details have been changed). One of his employees, Todd, had been working as a foreman focusing on small projects, but he was keen to take on a bigger role. “He periodically reminded me that it wasn’t the best use of his skills,” Carl recalls. “He wasn’t being obnoxious, but it was clear that he didn’t want to stay in that position forever.” So when a different foreman position came up late last year, Carl was excited to offer it to Todd. Since it was a similar job with the same title, he assumed he didn’t need to raise Todd’s salary. But when he suggested the switch, Todd said that he had been on a few interviews and had three good job offers. “He didn’t say the exact amount, just that the offers were more money and that he wanted to be sure he was valued at our firm,” Carl explains. “I told him, ‘If you want to make a specific request, I’m happy to consider it and see what I can do.’”
Todd asked for $6,000 more a year. Carl’s immediate thought was, That’s pretty modest, but he didn’t react right away. Although salary decisions for his group were under his purview, he still wanted to run it by the company’s president, Sam. During that discussion, Carl explained that he thought Todd deserved the raise, especially if his responsibilities increased, and that there was money in the budget to give it to him. “I felt comfortable that my department could absorb the additional money to retain a talented foreman.”
But due to the company’s tenuous financial position, Sam was hesitant. “In his view, giving raises at that time wasn’t responsible,” Carl recalls. The president wanted Todd to reconsider the request and spoke directly to him to explain the situation. Carl was relieved: “I didn’t want to be a puppet, and he would’ve known that I was parroting someone else.”
After talking to Sam, Todd agreed to withdraw his request and stay with the company, in large part because the company offered benefits and more promotion opportunities down the road. Carl hopes he can give the foreman a raise later on, but for now they’re working well together. “We talked it through enough that he’s on board. It seems like he’s going to stay.”
Case Study #2: Make the case for retention
Phil Brooks recently took over a department of 35 people in a small tech company. When he asked one of his employees, Sheryl, about her job and where she hoped to go within the department (names and details have been changed), “she offhandedly mentioned that she felt she was underpaid and that people kept giving her more work,” says Phil.
Because she was one of the team’s top performers, he took the comment seriously and told her he would look into it. He did a quick benchmark assessment to compare her salary to others in the organization and pulled some studies to see what similar companies were paying people in comparable positions. He could see right away that Sheryl was indeed underpaid. “It was clear to me that she needed an adjustment, especially since she seemed like a flight risk, given her high workload,” he says.
In their company, the COO, CFO, and HR director make decisions about compensation together and typically grant raises only at year-end review time. But Phil felt he had a strong argument for giving Sheryl a raise off-cycle. “It’s a real pain to have these one-off negotiations, but I didn’t think this could wait.” He wanted to give her a more senior title as “recognition of the work she was already doing, since she had 10 direct reports.”
Because he was new to his team leader position, he talked with other managers to gauge who among the three decision makers would be the most amenable to his request. The answer was the COO. He figured he’d start there, test his arguments, and then move on to the other two. The COO was supportive and helped him convince the others.
When Phil gave Sheryl the good news, he also asked her to think about how she could improve her performance — not by doing more, but by managing better, delegating more, and relying on her team. She was thrilled and agreed to work on her management skills.
文章二
Nobody likes talking about money, especially when somebody is asking you for more of it. But for managers, money talks are part of the job description. So what do you do when your direct report hits you up for a raise? Here are 5 smart ways from RPO solutions experts, Hire Velocity —and one terrible way—to respond.
5 Things to Say When Someone Asks for a Raise
When an employee asks you for more money, bear in mind that he or she has put a lot of thought and effort into that moment. Most people don’t ask for a raise on a whim. They plan the conversation carefully, gather all their supporting evidence, and choose just the right moment to broach the subject.
The worst thing you can do is blow them off. Here are 5 things you can say to steer the conversation in the right direction.
- “Tell me more.”
Never react right away, either positively or negatively. It’s likely that you will have to get approval from someone else before making a final decision, so don’t raise false hopes. But don’t knock the wind out of the employee’s sails immediately either. Take the time to actively listen to her request and communicate that you value her contributions. “Tell me more” lets the employee know you’re listening without undermining your authority as a decision-maker. Take notes and carefully control your body language so you don’t send a negative message. - “I appreciate your request.”
Acknowledge the fact that the employee has gone out on a limb to ask for more money. He may be making a bid for higher compensation before accepting a position elsewhere, so consider the request in light of possible retention ramifications. If the employee’s role or performance doesn’t warrant an increase in salary, it’s still important to give him a fair hearing and consider his reasons for the request. - “I’ll get back to you in two weeks.”
Don’t give an answer right away. Instead, say you’ll consider the information she’s presented and give her a date when she can expect a response. Allow yourself enough time to review her self-analysis and do your own research into her performance. Look for indicators that the employee deserves additional compensation based on performance, internal equity, or fair market value. Look at salary data for your industry, specific results the employee has achieved, how long she has been with the company, and how difficult it would be to find a replacement. - If the answer is yes: “We discussed your performance, and we believe a raise is warranted.”
Base your answer on the research you’ve done, not on subjective feelings. Remember, other employees may be watching to see how things turn out. Make it clear why you agreed to the request and emphasize that it was a collective decision based on the value of the employee—not on how hard he begged for it. - If the answer is no: “We considered your current role and responsibilities, and we believe your compensation is appropriate.”
Let the employee know that you evaluated each of the arguments presented in addition to conducting your own research. He or she should understand that you took the request seriously and gave it careful consideration. Explain the compensation process and offer some suggestions for increasing the chances of a yes.
One Terrible Way to Respond to a Raise Request
It’s easy to feel irritated when an employee comes to you about a raise, especially if you don’t think he deserves one. Still, he has put a lot of effort into formulating that request and he probably feels vulnerable as he sits awkwardly in front of your desk.
And that’s why you should never criticize the employee for asking.
Even if money is tight and the answer is no, you can still respect the employee’s contributions and provide useful feedback based on your knowledge of his performance.
Good management is about helping employees reach their potential and make valuable contributions to your company. Whether the answer is yes or no, discussions about compensation can serve as beneficial coaching opportunities. Don’t miss the chance to help your employees become more effective contributors—no matter what your answer turns out to be.