Want a pay raise?

Be assertive!

Want a promotion? Or small perks like an office car or a mobile phone? Then it’s time to get competitive

    Astudy has revealed that out of people looking for a pay raise, those who pursue it aggressively are the ones who bag the promotion. 
    The study found that those “who don’t take no for an answer” are far more likelier to get what they want. The study also showed that employees who had “done their homework” in advance, in terms of negotiations also earned themselves more holidays and perks, like mobile phones and company cars. 
    Researchers from Temple University’s Fox School of Business, Philadelphia and George Mason University, near Washington DC, who did the story also discovered that workers who avoided salary discussions at appraisals or in interviews, almost never got a raise. 
    The people who actively sought out a rise earned an average of 5000 dollars more every year than those who didn’t. More “assertive” workers then ended up earning up to 600,000 dollars more over a 40-year career. 
    They also found that career-driven women were just as “competitive” during salary negotiations. 
    “Our results suggest (workers) who were more prepared for the negotiation process were able to use more assertive strategies,” a daily quoted Professor Crystal Harold as saying. 
    “By prepared, I mean those who learned more about the market value of their position, did their homework on the organisation and perhaps inquired about previous offers made about the organisation. These individuals were empowered and were generally more assertive. Furthermore, workers use competitive strategy, such as not taking no for an answer, threatening to withdraw from the process if the offer was unacceptable, were most successful in raising their salary,” she added. 
    However, she added that aggressive tactics could sometimes backfire and so, “collaboration” negotiation might be more useful. This would mean listing your demands with a caveat that times may be tough, but that you hoped for a compromise in the future. 
    The study is published in the “Journal of Organizational Behaviour”.