Ever wonder if you were being compensated appropriately? Maybe you are being under paid or maybe you are being overpaid. Being under paid or over paid is often typical. In the first case, you might have been in your current position for 2 years and the cost to hiring an individual in your role with your skill set has increased significantly. Often times since you have been at the company for a while, you have received the standard increase in salary of x percent which is less than the current market rate. In the latter case, the market value of someone in your position with your experience has dropped. New hires are cheaper, but the employer typically doesn’t drop your salary, they just give you the nominal x percent raise per year.
I know one individual who was at a company for a number of years. He moved within the company to manage a new team. He was surprised to learn the amount of money his team members were making compared to his salary. He then became really upset when he learned that an individual that now reported to him was making more money than he was. The company rectified the situation of course, but these things happen. Salaries get out of alignment with the market.
I have been trying to determine my market value lately. I hate the money part, I always have. I like doing interesting stuff with cool people. For me the money is secondary, tertiary or even further down the list, it always has been. That being said, you have to pay the bills, and you want to be treated fairly. In order to know that you are being treated fairly, you need to have some data to compare and contrast. I have tried several methods including on-line databases, research reports on salaries for people in technology. I found them to vary widely regardless of the factors. I didn’t trust the the data I was getting. The results were all over the board.
I have however found the answer. My solution was to query my network. Via E-Mail, face to face conversations and Twitter, I asked a selected variety of individuals in the technology field. Some managers, some directors, others owners of companies for input based on a few simple criteria including years of experience, location, and type of opportunity. The responses were great. They varied in detail and some included bonus and wages but information was very consistent across the network. I am now much more comfortable with the market value for myself.
Personally, I have always wished that people were more open with their compensation. Not to be nosy, but I think the openness would help many people and the industry in general. Unfortunately, it is considered a very ‘private’ matter. Most companies of course have explicit rules that say you can not discuss your compensation. You can understand why they do this of course, it is to their advantage not the communities.
I’m realizing more and more that my personal network has a lot of untapped value. I need to harness it more and I also need to ensure I give back even more as that is what keeps it going. To all the individuals that responded to my query thank you.
Do you know what you are financially worth in your market? Is the value accurate?
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