Additional Responsibilities/Promotion in all but name - Top Questions

[wildest_jjk]

Hi all,

I am in a little predicament at the moment and would really appreciate some advice! This situation is exactly the same as one that I have previously found myself in. It was during my time at a previous company and it was unfortunately one of the main reasons for leaving in the end. So as I am sure you will understand I want to make sure I play this right!

After a tough year in the company (lots of issues, mainly organisational and lack of processes) I thought it was time to make my pitch, talk about how I have more to give and play on my previous experience as well. I am currently a network engineer but had moved into management (from engineer) within my last company and was in that position for about a year and a half.

So essentially I have pushed for a promotion so that I can have more responsibilities/open up more opportunities to me. The problem is on the call my manager also had similar things in mind for me and was due to speak with me about it anyway (I can verify this with a colleague but haven't as I suspect it's true). He talked about how he has recognised my ability and was very pleased with the progress I made. It's almost like he had seen my notes I already had to go over.

Towards the end of the call he told me he wanted to make me a regional team lead and had already talked about it with one of my colleagues. This sounds a reasonable step up and would mimic the same move I had made in my previous company. The problem is I don't think it is a promotion in terms of title and compensation. So that leads me onto some of my concerns, the first being that the other regional lead is also on a higher engineering grade that I am on and I don't think he has any other management experience. There are also a couple of other concerns and one is that my manager is soon to be moved into a different team, a lot of which is due to some disagreements with certain colleagues in the management structure. This could potentially make things difficult for me as I am quite in sync with my manager.

Anyway I'm conscious that this post is getting quite long so it would be good to understand how you would deal with this? What things should I be asking? I know there are career benefits to taking on responsibilities/opportunities like this but at the same time I have been in this position before and as a result I was drastically underpaid for my skills and experience.

Any feedback is greatly appreciated! Cheers

 

[randomshenans]

I'd just have that very conversation with your boss tbh. Really appreciate the opportunity but here are my concerns...

 

[HangTime]

I know there are career benefits to taking on responsibilities/opportunities like this but at the same time I have been in this position before and as a result I was drastically underpaid for my skills and experience.

Don't be afraid to explain it along these sort of lines. At my last company, when I was offered a promotion I wasn't altogether happy with the pay rise on offer, and one of the explanations I gave was that at a previous employer I'd taken a promotion with a very modest raise and ended up feeling a bit under-rewarded in the longer term (I obviously also cited what I perceived market rates to be of course). This wasn't even some sort of made up negotiation scenario, it was all true and I said it was one of the reasons I'd moved on, as is the case for you too. I didn't want a huge amount extra but that was basically a five minute conversation that got me an extra £2k per year, doesn't sound a huge amount but obviously it compounds year-on-year.

If there is some pushback around your comparison with the other regional lead, you could propose that you are happy to prove yourself in the role for a period (perhaps 6 months) after which you want pre-agreed revision of contract terms to move you up to an appropriate level. You could use the rhetorical angle in terms of stating that if you've successfully filled the role for six months without getting moved back into your old role that you must by definition be doing an adequate job and hence it is reasonable to be paid as such. The main thing is having this agreed in writing rather than a vague verbal assurance "our hands are a bit tied by senior management at the moment but we'll sort you out in due course....".

 

[wildest_jjk]

I'd just have that very conversation with your boss tbh. Really appreciate the opportunity but here are my concerns...

Thanks I have a 1-1 call setup with him next week to discuss so need to make sure that I get the concerns in sooner rather than later.

Don't be afraid to explain it along these sort of lines. At my last company, when I was offered a promotion I wasn't altogether happy with the pay rise on offer, and one of the explanations I gave was that at a previous employer I'd taken a promotion with a very modest raise and ended up feeling a bit under-rewarded in the longer term (I obviously also cited what I perceived market rates to be of course). This wasn't even some sort of made up negotiation scenario, it was all true and I said it was one of the reasons I'd moved on, as is the case for you too. I didn't want a huge amount extra but that was basically a five minute conversation that got me an extra £2k per year, doesn't sound a huge amount but obviously it compounds year-on-year.

If there is some pushback around your comparison with the other regional lead, you could propose that you are happy to prove yourself in the role for a period (perhaps 6 months) after which you want pre-agreed revision of contract terms to move you up to an appropriate level. You could use the rhetorical angle in terms of stating that if you've successfully filled the role for six months without getting moved back into your old role that you must by definition be doing an adequate job and hence it is reasonable to be paid as such. The main thing is having this agreed in writing rather than a vague verbal assurance "our hands are a bit tied by senior management at the moment but we'll sort you out in due course....".

Really appreciate the input and it's nice to hear how things went from your own experience. I completely get what you mean with the pre-agreement and I need to set that expectation as soon as possible. If a more immediate promotion is not feasible then I will move to suggest something like the above as a compromise.

I get the feeling making comparisons against other colleagues is something that is best avoided in most cases, though I don't see any other way of emphasizing the point. Perhaps I focus on the above first and then throw this in if I need to provide some supporting evidence.

 

[Mr Badger]

Thanks I have a 1-1 call setup with him next week to discuss so need to make sure that I get the concerns in sooner rather than later.

If you are concerned make sure you get everything in writing for future reference. If your manager doesn't seem keen to provide this then you can email them afterwards to get the discussion documented e.g. "Thank you for your time today to talk about the new role. My understanding is..."

 

[wildest_jjk]

If you are concerned make sure you get everything in writing for future reference. If your manager doesn't seem keen to provide this then you can email them afterwards to get the discussion documented e.g. "Thank you for your time today to talk about the new role. My understanding is..."

Thanks will do.

Would you guys recommend getting the responsibilities outlined? Either just in writing or having a job description updated?

I’m concerned that without this my responsibilities will just balloon!

 

[dlockers]

Thanks will do.

Would you guys recommend getting the responsibilities outlined? Either just in writing or having a job description updated?

I’m concerned that without this my responsibilities will just balloon!

Take the responsibilities (within reason), then set expectations you need to be recognised for it - otherwise use the new responsibilities and experience to update your CV and shoot off.

If you get the "cat and mouse" battle of promotion/payrise + responsibilities too 'one sided' then you'll progress awfully slowly.

Then you have the "ball" to outline what your responsibilities have become to your line manager, versus you asking him to tell you what they are.

 

[wildest_jjk]

Just to update all of you helpful folk...

The conversation isn't looking positive, more so from the senior management perspective. My line manager is moving on themselves soon so I imagine this won't be helping my cause either. There would be support to express my desire/expectations to the hierarchy but not sure I can be bothered going down that route now.

Think it will be a case of setting my own expectations and leaving it as that. Either way I will get these responsibilities now.

 

[randomshenans]

Job market is good right now. I'd have a look about