You are proud that you have passed your PMP exam and earned that valuable PMP Certification. Long weeks and months of study have paid off, and now it is time to monetize the effort! Even though you know that you deserve a raise, it is always tough to have that conversation with your manager. In order to help you, we created this article in which we will discuss how to negotiate salary raise.
Firstly, you are not asking anything out of the ordinary. It is a common practice for employees to ask for a pay raise whether they have recently reached a milestone or have received a certification in an area of professional expertise.
Master of Project Academy has recently conducted a post-project management certification survey for the participants who took the certification exam in the last 12 months. The survey results are based on the replies from 628 participants who attended the survey from 124 countries. Based on the findings, 41.06% of the participants who earned a certification in the last 12 months reported that they got a promotion in their current job or found a new job.
How to negotiate salary raise? What should you do to be successful in proving your case and getting a pay raise? You will need to treat the whole process as a business case! Use what you have learned from the PMP prep and the PMI resources to build your case for a pay increase.
- You don’t have PMP Certification yet? Prepare for the PMP exam with our self-paced PMP Certification training
- Want to learn more about PMP Certification? Read our Top 25+ QAs about PMP
Steps to Negotiate the 10% Increase in the Salary
When asking for a raise you’re signaling to your employer that you believe your performance has been above average. It also means that you are prepared to take on more responsibility. You should be able to quantify how this PMP Certification makes you more valuable. To be successful, you should be prepared to discuss that in-depth. If you prove your point and convince your manager that your skills have improved and they will benefit the company, then your manager won’t hesitate at your request.
Based on the survey conducted by Master of Project Academy, 36.84% of the participants who earned Project Management Professional Certification (PMP) reported that they increased their salary by more than 10%!
Here are some steps that might be helpful to prepare your “Pay increase” business case and get the desired 10% raise:
- Establish what is your professional value for the company
- Do market research to identify how much your skills are worth
- Prepare for the important talk with your manager
- Rehearse before the meeting to gain confidence
- Remember to be flexible in negotiations
1. Establish what is your professional value for the company
In order to prepare to negotiate a raise, you need to determine what is the value you bring to the company. You should be able to determine your personal and professional strengths, skills, education, and how all these combined features benefit your employer. You need to identify the value and benefits you currently bring to the company and how your future performance will improve based on the knowledge you have gained during the process of preparing and passing the PMP exam.
Furthermore, you need to write down what is your direct and overall experience in the industry, your most successful projects, your leadership abilities, and your current salary. You will need all this information to begin to build your case. Write down some interesting insights and prominent facts that will further establish the value you bring to the company.
- If you want some hints, check out the Project Manager Qualities
2. Do market research to identify how much your skills are worth
You might have been working for the same company for over a decade. Maybe you were not really interested in how much others make in comparable industries and in similar job positions. Yet, when you prepare for that important talk with your manager about the pay increase, you should spend some time and do your research to see what other professionals make in similar positions as yours. It will help you quite a lot when you try to determine how much you can realistically ask for. To get the most accurate idea, research what is the average salary of your job title, both nationally and locally. Especially check how much the companies in your industry usually offer for your level of experience, education, and certifications earned.
In the recent survey completed by Master of Project Academy, 30.16% of the participants who work in the Information Technology sector reported that they increased their salary more than 10% after they earned a Project Management Certification (PMP, CAPM, CSM, Prince2, etc.). Furthermore, 38.60% of the participants who have less than 5 years of experience and earned a certification increased their salary by 10% or more. Last but not the least, 21.93% of the participants who have less than 5 years of experience and earned a certification increased their salary 20% or more.
- If you want to learn more about how much raise you can ask for, you can check out our PMP Salary article.
3. Get prepared for the important talk with your manager
It is critical to come prepared for that significant talk with your manager. Especially, if you negotiate in person, you should have a summary of the talking points, a list of your achievements and certifications earned so far.
You should start the meeting by expressing appreciation for the opportunity to discuss your accomplishments in the company and the professional certifications you have earned so far. Continue the meeting by explaining that you feel you deserve a pay rise and clearly lay out the reasons why. More specifically, explain how the PMP Certification that you have earned is a great global standard that is applied across the board in many industries and at different complexity levels of projects and that your learned skills will be directly applied in your current and future projects. Furthermore, explain how the company will benefit from your advanced skills and if you have more specific data explain how you will improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the projects you manage.
- Read our article to learn more about what other PMP Benefits you get when you earn the certification.
4. Rehearse before the meeting to gain confidence
It is important to rehearse the conversation you will have with your manager. Especially if you are going to negotiate your pay raise in person or over the phone. Practice will help you gain the confidence you need and will help you remain calm and focused. You can rehearse prior to the meeting either with a trustworthy friend or a family member. If you think it will be beneficial, you can ask them to role-play the manager. They can ask you some specific questions you expect to hear during the meeting.
Additionally, you can practice the discussion in front of the mirror so you can observe your body language. Body language reveals a great deal of information that is not conveyed by the spoken word. Through your body language, you show if you are goal-oriented and focused, or whether you are insecure or nervous. Therefore, this subtle communication without words can make a solid impression of your intentions and your confidence level in what you are saying.
It is paramount to remain confident throughout the negotiations. When you display confidence, it shows that you believe in yourself, your qualifications, skills, and the contributions you make to the company. You can stay confident remembering that you are well prepared, have done your research, and know your current worth in the job market.
5. Remember to be flexible in negotiations
That’s our last tip about how to negotiate salary raise. Negotiating for a pay raise after you have earned your PMP, or another professional certification is important. It shows that you know that your worth and your contributions to the company have increased. However, it is also important to stay flexible throughout the negotiations. A conventional approach in salary negotiations is to ask for slightly more than what you expect. This flexibility in the ask gives you enough space to talk. Even if the manager does not meet your request, you will still get an increase that will satisfy your expectations.
When you negotiate for a salary increase after you have earned your PMP Certification, you should also consider your prospects with the company. If you feel that there is an opportunity for you to grow and advance, and get an even more lucrative salary in the future, then it might be worth accepting a lower pay raise.
If getting a pay rise is not possible at the moment, due to external or internal factors, discuss if there are other ways that might compensate for that pay increase. Discuss with your manager if there is a position within the company that will help you grow in your career. Or you can find a way to improve the work-life balance or get more paid time off.
- If you wish to earn other certifications to strengthen your hand, you can check out the top project manager training options.
Conclusion: How to Negotiate Salary Raise
In this article, we shared our tips about how to negotiate salary raise. In conclusion, always remember that a pay raise is only a small part of your salary. You might feel disappointed that you didn’t receive that pay increase and start feeling not appreciated. Still, you have to act diplomatically and don’t openly show displeasure until you get a new job.
Based on the survey conducted by Master of Project Academy, 41.06% of the participants who earned a certification in the last 12 months reported that they got a promotion in their current job or found a new job.
- Read all the results of our post-project management certification survey now!