The job market has rebounded and now's the time to seek career-boosting incentives
You’ve been slaving away at your job since the economic downturn, taking on more work with no raise in pay and believing a light would one day appear at the end of the tunnel. According to both DICE and Robert Half Technology, that day is here.
In Robert Half’s 2014 IT Salary Guide, salaries for most job titles increased more than 5% from 2013 to 2014, and they ranged above a 7% increase for certain job titles, including developer/programmer analyst, data architect and business intelligence analyst. Meanwhile, according to DICE, average salaries for tech professionals are up nearly 3% to $87,811.
The message behind the salary increases, however, is not contentment; in the DICE survey, 54% of respondents were not happy with their compensation. More likely, the salary boosts speak to employers all too aware of the rising competition for tech talent and hoping to increase retention of valued employees.
After all, according to DICE, 65% of respondents said they were confident they could find a better position in 2014. “Whether in retail, finance, telecom, aerospace or mainstream technology companies, every industry is turning to mobile, social, big data and cloud, causing the requirement for technology professional to grow exponentially,” says Shravan Goli, president of DICE. And even though salaries are growing in most job roles, employers are even more pressured to provide incentives to professionals with hot skills, Goli says.
Given this climate, the time seems right to ask for those perks you’ve always dreamed of and that might transform your current job into something more rewarding. According to DICE, 66% of respondents said their employer is providing at least one motivator to stay, up from 53% in 2009. Top incentives include more interesting or challenging assignments (17%), increased compensation (17%) and flexible work location (10%) or work hours (9%).
Here are some ideas for incentives you could ask for to improve your workplace experience and maybe even boost your future career prospects.
1. A challenging work assignment
As Goli points out, there are few companies today that aren’t at least thinking of mobile, social, analytics or cloud technologies, if not being outright engaged in an initiative. So even if it’s not blatantly obvious that your company is engaged with one or all of these technology areas, chances are that if you asked around, you could position yourself to be involved with a project that’s in the development stages.
“It’s important for companies to let their tech employees know if they’re going in a mobile direction in the next six months and so need more mobile developers than desktop developers,” Goli says. Many companies are funding training opportunities when it comes to mobile development and big data skills rather than hiring because of talent scarcity, he adds.
Tech professionals may find employers – especially larger companies and startups — willing to give them time out of their daily work routine to develop these skills, whether attending online classes, getting certified, watching webinars or attending a hackathon or bootcamp. According to Robert Half, many employers today offer at least partial reimbursement for professional development and educational opportunities for their workers.
2. A competitive salary or bonus
If you have an in-demand skill set – or have gained traction in developing one – it’s a good time to launch a meaningful conversation with your manager about your compensation. “More tech professionals are asking themselves whether they’re getting paid competitively,” Goli says. “Especially because some are getting called by recruiters, there is more awareness of what your experience is worth in the marketplace right now.”
This tactic isn’t plausible for all skill areas, Goli warns. “Someone who’s a systems administrator, unless they become a devops engineer, won’t be able to get the bump.” Even if the employer has given you the training opportunity and funds to advance your skills, it’s fair to ask for pay that reflects the new skill level. “Companies can’t expect gratitude for helping people get to the next level,” Goli says. “When you’re building your career, every dollar matters in that context.”
3. Flexible work hours
Although 2013 was a tough year for proponents of flexible work schedules — with Yahoo’s and Best Buy’s highly visible bans on the practice – it is still a top job perk for tech workers, according to DICE. In its survey, 19% of respondents said their employers offered either the option of a flexible work place or work hours. DICE itself offers this option to employees in its Silicon Valley office that it opened last year. “One of the main things they’re looking for is flexibility because commuting in that area is such a pain,” he says. And in a 2013 study by workplace consultant Catalyst, 81% of respondents (all full-time employees with MBAs) reported they were currently working at a firm that offers flexible work arrangements, including telecommuting, flexible arrival or departure, flex time, compressed work weeks, reduced work/part-time and job sharing.
Employers may be more willing than ever to offer flexible work options in exchange for keeping tech talent on-board, especially professionals who might otherwise gravitate toward a startup that offers this option. Companies may also be more open to flex time if they’re trying to attract millennial workers, who tend to blur the boundaries between work and personal time.
4. Free food and other ancillary perks
The burgeoning startup culture may also give you a leg up in influencing your employer to offer an in-office perk that really matters to you, like access to free or low-cost healthy meals and snacks. According to Robert Half Technology, many workers today expect employers to provide them with access to nutritious sustenance during the workday. “We’re getting beyond ping-pong tables now – it’s reminiscent of the 2000s, with drycleaning and on-site haircuts coming back,” Goli says.
Some of these perks can be a bit radical when it comes to changing the corporate culture; cases in point include unlimited vacation policies, dog-friendly offices and an in-office bar. Amenities that would be easier to ask for include paid volunteer days, a weekly running club or on-site services such as yoga classes. While none of these ancillary perks may be life-changing, they could help you look forward to going to work and enjoy it more while you’re there.
