TipTopJob Blog

With National Hug Your Boss Day fast approaching, we are turning around our survey questions rapidly to gather lots of interesting data to report. Do help us by casting your votes on the homepage of the website.

Last week, we asked how many bosses you report into. Surprisingly, we found that 12% report into 4 or more bosses. 

However, more obviously, there were 54% of people who only report into the 1 boss, making it a little easier for them.

26% report into 2 bosses and 8%, 3.

Having many tiers a hierarchy is fairly common practice but the number of bosses you directly report to is different and can clearly vary from company to company. 

So, all of you out there that report into more than the 1 boss, would you prefer to have just 1 boss to report to or do you find multiple reporting OK?! Do tell us here.....

Our latest findings reveal those all-important qualities our bosses portray. "Courtesy & Respect" come top of the pile with a massive 46% of employees choosing that as the most important quality in their eyes.

Second to "Courtesy & Respect", came "Clear Communication" with 22% selecting this quality as the most important to them. Some people feel they need that ease of communication to perform their job to the best of their ability.

17% wanted their boss to "Allow freedom to do their job" over anything else. The sheer thought of constant nit picking and overseeing drives some people crazy!

9% felt that "Valuing input & ideas of others" was key to them but at the bottom of the list came "Being Available" and "Respecting Privacy". 4% selecting these options so they are seen as being important in a small sample of employees.

How would you rate your bosses qualities now and does this match up with how you rate the qualities in order of importance to you? If so, does that mean you have the job of your dreams? Tell us here....

- Do you think you are not been paid enough? Not being valued at your company?
- Do you look at your pay slip and wish you had been paid that little bit more that you deserve?
- Do you think you have been particularly successful in your job? And gone beyond expectations?

...... If you have answered 'yes' to any of the above, then it is time to negotiate a pay rise. But how do you go about this and what are the best strategies in order to get the best rise?

Most companies will conduct quarterly or bi-annually pay reviews for their employee's, which if successful will result in a pay rise. However, as a hard working employee that is successful, you may feel it is justified to approach your boss to ask for a rise before your review is due.

Whatever your situation is, you will have already agreed this is in your contract and know when your pay review will be - and before your conversation with your boss, the key thing to remember is that you must prepare!

Before you ask
It is advisable to do some background work about salaries in your industry and role and plan your negotiations prior to approaching your boss. You can normally use salary analyzers or something similar on the Internet, or even phone around to ask recruitment agencies for the market averages for your role.

You need to really know what you are worth and what you have achieved recently, and why you deserve the pay rise. You will need to explain what skills and benefits you have brought to the company, how you have excelled in your role in particular and that you are a loyal employee. You will need to focus on your knowledge and experience you have developed and the way you have grown, learnt and developed whilst working for the company. You should note any expectations you have exceeded, any additional responsibilities you have incurred and any extra achievements you have made that stand out and you feel you deserve credit for. You need to be able to explain all of these points in detail, expand on any of them in detail and show that these are the reasons why you should be considered for a pay rise!

You need to show your commitment and express your desire to do well and tell your boss what you are trying to target and what you want to achieve.

Things that you need to consider what you have done when negotiating a pay rise:

· Projects you have managed, led, completed and have been noted as being out standing
· Any awards you have received
· Any procedures you have put in place that may have saved the company money
· Tasks you have been individually assigned to do due to your unique skills and abilities
· Additional tasks beyond what you expected in your current job role
· Anything you have excelled on and been praised for in the past

Also be clear as to what your current salary is, what the average is and what you ideally want!

How much to ask for?
It is a good idea to ask for more than you anticipate and that you give yourself room to negotiate. Expect your boss to propose a counter offer after you have asked for your pay rise sum. You should definitely bargain and you should expect it to usually end up in a middle ground figure so always go in high!

What if your boss says NO?
Just because you are going for a pay rise, you may not necessarily get it - but do not be disappointed if he says no. Firstly, there is always next time and from the feedback on this review you can work towards the next. You need to understand the reasons why he/she has said no and reflect on them. It is not the end of the world and it is not forever.

It may be due to the fact that you are still in the learning curve at work and still developing new skills, in which case, once you feel fully developed; it could be time to ask again.

Do not be afraid to ask for non-financial benefits as well, such as, a phone or extra holiday. You could ask for training and development and the company may be more inclined to pay for this, as you will be learning more and bringing more value to the company. Employees are an asset to companies that they work for at the end of the day!

If you really feel you deserve a pay rise and you are not happy working at the company, then you can always search for a new job that would be willing to pay you more. It may be that your current company is not suited to you and this is your sign to take the next step.

Result!
It is a great feeling if you manage to receive a pay rise! If you work hard and achieve great results, they do not often go un-noticed and you will no doubt be rewarded with what you deserve. A good confidence boost, self-satisfaction and self-affiliation will be the result!

Good luck!

You can also read this article in our Career Centre.

In our latest survey results we discovered that 43% of individuals WOULD work harder when their boss is in. Although, more respondents said that they didn't and that they work just as hard when the boss is in to when the boss is not, 43% is still a very large proportion of people who need constant supervision and guidance.

So, why do people need this constant control and direction? Are there just too many distractions with the open access to the World Wide Web that when the boss is not around it allows employees to do their shopping or catch up with friends on social media? Are colleagues developing better friendships at work that they just chat, have a joke and mess around at the expense of getting their daily tasks completed? 

Whatever it is, you need some motivation to focus on your day to day activities without requiring the boss to be a around! If this is you, maybe you need to consider having some benchmarks and guidelines between you and your colleagues on how long you are going to "chat" for before then turning your focus on your daily chores. Maybe give yourself 10 minutes in the morning to have a natter. And if you are serial Facebooker or shopper and click back and forth from your task in hand, maybe stop yourself from shopping through working hours and only so this in your break or lunch break. 

Do not forget, you are being employed to do a job so you want to make sure you are performing to the best of your ability. You do not want to get the sack and have to move on without a reference. Our advice is to try your best all of the time :)

Are you after a pay rise or promotion? 

Whilst employed in any job, there are several things you can do to impress your boss to increase the chances of receiving a pay rise, further responsibilities or even a promotion into a new job.

Learn about your boss

By knowing what makes your boss tick, what their goals are and how they work, it will help you relate to them and understand how to work to make them happy. In general, individuals will work better with others if they know and understand them.

Trust

Show your boss that you can deliver what you say you can. Make sure you meet your deadlines and that you consistently complete tasks on time to a high standard. If you can do this, your boss will begin to trust you and rely on your ability to do the tasks you are set. Ultimately, your boss will assign you further responsibilities and you may be offered a promotion.

Rapport

By building a good relationship with your employer, you are more likely to work more productively and make your boss like you. Being friends with him/her and talking about your interests and hobbies will help to build up a good relationship. Always remember though, that they are still your boss!

Make your boss's job easy

As well as doing your current role, try to take the pressure off your boss by helping with additional tasks. If necessary, you may need to work longer hours in order to highlight your skills and abilities and really impress your boss. Try to resolve any problems they face or suggest new methods to issues that arise.

Work out what you are good at & enjoy your work

By organising your day and identifying what you are good at, you can work cleverly to impress your boss. If you can do things very well, then try to get involved in these tasks more to show you are extremely capable of doing them. If you are performing tasks that you are good at, you will enjoy your work more and as a result naturally be more productive.

Appearance and Presentation

Always turn up to work well presented and dress appropriately. You do not want to upset your boss by dressing down, wearing too much make-up or not being clean in the morning. If you can dress up smartly, you look professional and therefore approach your work in a more professional manner.

Acquire new skills and further knowledge

By going on courses and showing you are keen to learn and develop your skills, you will really impress your employer. Not only will this initially create an impact, but also it will give your employer confidence in your future skills and abilities, recognizing your enthusiasm to learn and develop. One of the best ways to secure a promotion is to expand your knowledge and skill sets. Ask your boss about courses, training or such like that will help advance your learning.

Keep up to date with current industry news

It is also known that those who want to succeed should keep up to date with industry news and events as well as interesting trends outside their own speciality. This can prove to be very useful to the company and by showing you are keen to research and keep to date with trends in the industry, you will no doubt make an impression on your boss.

Ask for more responsibility

By asking for more work, more responsibility or volunteering to help out in the department shows interest and desire to be there and to help the company succeed. This in itself will impress the boss.

Be a team player

Teamwork is invaluable to companies and a very important skill to possess. By showing you are a good, effective team player, you will build your reputation and increase your value.

We hope this was useful to you! Why not head over to our Working Life articles in the Career Centre where you can find more related articles?

In the latest survey results released by National Hug Your Boss Day in association with TipTopJob.com, 71% of European workers admit to swearing at their boss. This is in strike contrast to those surveyed in Asia where only 10% admitted to it.

The survey quizzed employees across 5 Continents around the world. 52% in America admitted to using bad language in front of their boss, 23% in Australia and 13% in Africa.

As well as surveying global employees, the UK was split into territories. Employees in London & The South of England were the most rude with 82% admitting to swearing at their boss! Those in the North were the second most bad-mannered employees with 62% selecting YES followed by 61% in Scotland. Only 30% in the East swore, 42% in Wales, 54% in the West and 55% in Ireland. Could this be related to the longer hours’ people in London work and the more stress they are put under do you think?

National Hug Your Boss Day was created in 2008 by TipTopJob.com to promote healthy working relationships. It is being celebrated this year on Friday 4th September and calls for colleagues and managers to simply catch a hug on camera and share it! Corinne Hutchinson comments, “With most of your waking hours spent at work with colleagues and managers, we feel that it is best to create a happy environment to encourage morale and motivation which in turn will increase productivity in the workplace. Do not forget to get involved on the 4th and help promote this worthy cause.”

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For more information about National Hug Your Boss Day, please check out the website www.nationalhugyourbossday.com, find us on Facebook or Twitter or email hugyourboss@tiptopjob.com. National Hug Your Boss Day was created by TipTopJob, the International network of Generic and Specialist jobsites in 85 Countries and 61 Industries. For more information, please contact coz@tiptopjob.com.