Resumes: Salary Strategies for the New Year

Salary Strategies for the New Year

The year 2002 was filled with unprecedented business downturns with corporate scandals, Chapter 11 filings, major bankruptcies, business closures, salary cuts, and massive lay-offs. While you may be feeling quite grateful to have a job, you may also be facing a potential lay-off or having difficulty making ends meet.

Wise professionals keep abreast of their marketability and worth in the workplace and the New Year is a good time to do this. Here are some suggestions for calculating your worth:

Ask your human resources department for your salary range and ask where you should be based on your education, experience, and skills. Organizations usually want to keep employees below the mid-point.
Ask human resources for the salary range for the job above you. Evaluate what the range is between minimum and mid-point and your current salary.
Determine what your value is to the organization - have you exceeded sales quotas, brought in new business, generated new publicity, reduced shrinkage, or significantly reduced accounts receivable?
Locate salary surveys from professional and trade associations, executive search firms, employment agencies, and federal and state government agencies.
Use Internet sources such as http://www.bls.gov/bls/blswage.htm, www.wageweb.com, and www.Salary.com to check out comparable salaries.
Research competitive salaries through employment pages at organizational websites, online job postings such as www.washingtonjobs.com, and newspaper employment classified advertisements.
When it is time for performance evaluations, promotional opportunities, or salary negotiation for a new position, you will be well prepared to ask for an appropriate salary based on your skills, experience, and earned value.

All the best in the New Year!