Optimise your current setting, no matter the market dynamics.
Written by Dominic Moore
Irrelevant of market dynamics, people come to us looking to change roles to solve problems with their current setting.
The common ones being: running out of room to grow, too much travel, a lack of challenge, and working too many hours.
Whilst we can all seek to find solutions elsewhere, your current company should have the first right to solve these things. Besides, the grass is not always greener elsewhere, and given nothing is perfect, you might be swapping one set of problems for another.
So, here are my thoughts on how to optimise your current setting:
If you feel (or know) you are underpaid, ask for a pay rise. Of course, this is much harder in consulting, as salaries are relatively fixed by level, but you would be surprised at the variation of salaries in industry, even within the same company. It sounds easy to ask your leader for a pay rise, but we know it is not. The key here is preparing and articulating the value you have delivered to the company recently. If you have made or saved X amount for a company, are you eligible for a share of the spoils? If you have delivered a notable project, is this justification for a raise? Find some trusted sources and seek out the salary range for roles at your level, then go into a conversation armed with examples.
If you are away from home too much, ask for projects based in your home city. This is particularly true for those still in consulting but is also true for anyone in industry who delivers internal consulting services. If you don’t ask, you don’t get on this one, and this simple request has worked for some people I know without compromising career progression.
If you have run out of room to grow, ask for stretch opportunities. Is there a big project coming up you can grab hold of? Is there a junior member of staff who needs mentoring or upskilling? Is there a secondment opportunity that can give you a new set of challenges to tackle? Is there a role internally, outside of your core skill set, that you could develop into and apply for? You will likely need to network within a company to uncover these opportunities, but often these will prove to be the best ones to land.
If you are working too many hours, ask for help. Can the team hire to reduce the workload or seek external consulting help? Can you re-prioritise and either stop doing some things or redistribute work to other individuals or teams? While we all want to be the teams hero, asking for help is not a weakness but a skill you will learn to use throughout your career.
The common theme with all of these is being proactive in asking or seeking out more from your current company - but being prepared for the conversation with specific supporting evidence, examples or solutions.
One final thing to add: in the job market of 2023, which is slower than that of 2021 and 2022, optimising your current setting could be your best bet to freshen things up given the lack of opportunities in the market to change roles.