KNOWING AND COMMUNICATING YOUR WORTH
Whether you are applying for a new job, getting a promotion, or asking for an increase in salary, it is important to know what you are worth.
Where does worth come from? How do you measure your success?
It is critical to know what is important to your present or future employer. Your worth can be measured in numerous positive ways from:
- Increased earnings for the company (sales, new products)
- Better customer service for internal or external clients
- Improved systems for delivering products or services
- Enhanced management
- Valued-added service to customers
Your worth can be also measured in terms of the lack of negative impact:
- Not exceeding a certain error rate
- Having a low number of complaints
Each industry has standards for what is considered to be low, medium, or high performance.
As we grow with the job, we implicitly become more valuable to our present employer.
We will know more about internal and external operations, and as a result require little or no extra training.
Your role as an employee can also become enhanced by:
- Enrolling in a continuing education course related to your work
- Learning a new skill
- Joining an association
You should communicate your worth in simple, measured, concrete terms.
Here are just a few examples:
- “I answer over 150 phone calls per day and route them to the appropriate staff. Customers have told me I am both helpful and professional. I feel I represent the company in the most positive manner through my interactions with customers.”
- “I am responsible for collecting overdue invoices for our company. In a week’s time, I will call 30-40 overdue accounts, and thereby generate $20,000-$30,000 for our company. Previous workers in my department averaged $10,000.00 per week.”
- “ I write grants for our nonprofit, a career and employment center. Last year, my grants were responsible for creating $400,000.00 added funds to our organization. Additionally, this helped to create 4 new internal jobs. And this impacted 200 clients in getting new jobs. My job is the central point for raising new funding in our agency.”
- “I set up a new filing system that is being used by 4 secretaries. On the average, the new system saves 2-3 hours per week. When you think about it, that is a savings of 8-12 hours of work per week.”
Your worth as an employee will grow as you know what is important to your employer. Pay attention to all areas of concerns in your workplace. Every workplace is different. However, if it is a small nonprofit or a large manufacturing firm, you can be assured there is a unique problem that needs to be solved.
Part of knowing your worth is knowing how other employers perceive you. There are many websites that discuss salaries:
Additionally, professional associations keep very sophisticated data about salaries based upon geographical area, the size of employers, and duties performed.
Through networking with other professionals in your industry, you can also learn about the pay structure of various companies. Networking will also provide you with potential opportunities, as well as determine if in fact you are currently being underpaid.
Staffing services such as Robert Half keep annual salary reports about the various industry roles and salaries.
Public sector jobs in city, county, state, or federal governments have open information about job roles and salaries. Employment websites can also be valuable areas of culling information about salaries, titles, and job duties.
The greatest negotiation technique that an applicant has is to discuss ways that they can positively impact the employer. As the employer’s interest grows, your stock will go up as well. In other words, the best time to negotiate your worth is when they show interest in your skills, achievements, and capabilities.
The annual performance review. Why wait for the day to discuss what you have done during the course of the year. You should be preparing for this time throughout the year. Always document your accomplishments. Why not have periodic summaries of your accomplishments throughout the year? By doing this, it demonstrates that you are organized, as well as reminding the manager about all the things that you have accomplished.
If you feel you are undervalued, perhaps by knowing your worth you can create a conversation about more equitable pay. Sometimes, employers are limited by budgets, however, perhaps they can offer non-monetary benefits such as time off, classes, or a plum assignment.
Read books and articles about negotiation strategies, interviewing, and what is of value to employers. It is one thing to know your worth. It is also important to communicate your worth. These concepts go hand in hand.
The process of knowing your worth will be invaluable, not only on your current job, but when you begin looking for your next position.
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