How to earn more in IT: expert opinions
Nikita Tokar, senior Golang developer: It should be transparent and understandable for employees: for entry-level and middle levels, specific criteria and responsibilities for promotion can be identified, and a review of how ready the employee is to move to the next grade can be conducted every six months. For senior developers, due to the larger pool of tasks to be solved, it is more difficult to identify precise grades, so at this level it is easier to personally negotiate with management about future career goals and development paths, and receive feedback from colleagues with a similar or greater level of competencies. Also, salaries should be indexed to compensate for inflation once a year.
What to do if you think it’s time for you to increase your salary, but your bosses don’t initiate this step?
Nikita: Independently initiate a meeting with your superiors to discuss this issue. Provide convincing reasons for increasing your salary: for example, increased responsibility, increased amount of work, good results, etc. In case of refusal, you need to ask what was not satisfactory and what needs to be done for a promotion.
Natalia: Justify the salary increase with objective reasons: salary offers on the market, your professional growth, increased workload, and not with personal reasons (loans, changes in marital status, etc. have nothing to do with your work). Also, if you like everything else in the company, offer to define KPIs or a project for you that is tied to good bonuses. If after a couple of conversations they continue to ignore you, this is a reason to enter the market.
Do you think it is ethical to discuss salaries with colleagues (for example, to compare with your own)?
Natalia: Most likely not: if the company does not have an open salary policy, then this is within the scope of the NDA. Even if there is no non-disclosure clause in the NDA, from experience, such conversations never lead to positive thoughts; someone most often remains dissatisfied. It is better to monitor industry groups and the job market.
Nikita: I think there is nothing unethical in this. If an employer is trying to hide the salary within the company, this is a huge red flag. According to the laws of the Russian Federation, salary information is not confidential information and its disclosure cannot be prohibited. Discussion among colleagues can help identify any discrepancies between the employee's current role and responsibilities and the salary they receive.
Some users recommend that if management is in no hurry to increase salaries, bring an offer from another company. How would you rate this method?
Nikita: If they refused to increase the salary, then coming with an offer is a fairly common and normal practice. Often, due to inflation, and generally small increases in companies, the initial salary with which a person comes becomes, after a year or two, below the market one. And for an employer, an offer from another company is convincing evidence that you are underpaid here. Whether to stay at your current job or not is an individual choice for everyone. But all other things being equal, if the current employer gives a competitive counteroffer, it is easier to stay.
Natalia: If you have been treated well at the company, it is still better to first talk to your manager about the fact that you are not satisfied with the current conditions, and you will enter the market if they do not change. Your manager may actually think everything is ok and not know that you have a grievance. The fact that you will pretend that everything is fine and at the same time secretly go to interviews, this will still be considered as some kind of “betrayal” + most likely, you will no longer be considered a very reliable person, and may not be included in long-term strategies or personnel reserve.
Briefly, what experts advise:
Raise questions openly and don't be afraid to talk.
Prepare for the conversation: collect arguments in favor of a salary increase, note your strengths and achievements, prepare statistics of your contribution to the company: what solutions you developed or proposed and what results you achieved.
Some advise immediately naming an amount higher than desired or agreeing on when and by what amount the increases will be “on shore.”
The advice to evaluate other vacancies and come to the manager with an offer is also popular, although readers note that this is a risky step that not every manager will appreciate.
