A couple of weeks ago I wrote about how I don’t’ think church staff leaders make enough. I got lots of comments, questions, and very little pushback. The biggest question I got was from young leaders: “so how do I ask for a raise?” I sorta shrugged and said I don’t know.
So, I googled it and only found answers from consultants like myself. (lame) I thought instead I’d actually ask those who get the questions. Let’s go to the source!
I asked five leaders whom I am friends with and respect from across the country how they’d coach a young leader on how to get a raise. All are senior or executive pastors. All are millennials or Gen X. They all responded quickly which was great.
Here are the six themes that ran through their answers:
1. Talk about it during the interview. It’s easier to discuss this before you are hired.
2. Be mindful of the timing. Think about the calendar…when should this happen at your organization?
3. Ask for advice. Bring your supervisor into your thinking and process.
4. Be great at your job before asking. Get good reviews (if you have them) value what the org values.
5. Bring data and make your case. Do your research, be more than anecdotal.
6. Ask about the process. Question how this happens at this organization.
Here are their answers (with very little editing) below:
Senior Pastor/Church of 3,000:
I would say I have encouraged young leaders to ask bigger questions about rate ranges and how they are set AT hire. We use Leadership Networks stuff, and our goal is to get to the 75th percentile of pay for position and church size…eventually. We also never allow anyone to make less than the 25th percentile money for their role, regardless of education or experience.
We are upfront about what that rate range is.
I think if you are a young leader and you can walk in sort of knowing the ‘celling’ of the role and the possibility of increases because of it, it can really help.
The way I would always frame this as a young leader that was candidating somewhere was, ’nobody gets into this for the money, but I need to make sure that I’m being a good leader in my home and part of that is to make enough money to live in our community and have finances not be a distraction.’
I think another area that young leaders who are already in a position somewhere can be helpful with is looking for how they can add value or suggest ways to solve their financial gap. If they can be up front about what their needs are at a review time and suggest, ‘maybe I can help with some stuff that’s not currently in my role that I know needs to be done or get some flexibility to do some stuff on the side.’
I think fundamentally it gets 10x harder to have this conversation AFTER you are hired and a lot of younger guys and gals are trying so hard just to get in the door that you don’t realize till after that it’s a significant issue.
From An Executive Pastor/Church of 2,000:
It’s always important to keep the conversations throughout the year open and honest. I would coach someone to have these conversations frequently, not sporadically.
If they feel they deserve or need a raise, be proactive in talking about it. Start by asking how and when raises are determined, then guide the conversation toward the actual need. It’s helpful to have this conversation in light of how the organization functions though - if you know that raises happen annually, in the fall, don’t come in January and ask just because you suddenly remembered that your New Year’s resolution was to get ahead financially. Be sure that you “ask” and don’t “tell.” Ask for consideration when raises are considered.
Come prepared with “why” you feel this way and provide solid evidence, not just anecdotal.
Senior Pastor/Church of 500
I would bring a budget into the meeting and ask the pastor to help make this budget work... Or I would ask the question you are asking - what were you making twenty years ago compared to what I'm making now. It doesn't need to be confrontational, but informational. This is a real-world budget and the salary you are offering isn't enough to be able to make ends meet....
Executive Leader/Church of 15,000:
My coaching to the 20- or 30-year-old would start with being the best employee that I have. If you come to me asking for a raise and I have been dragging you along with every situation, that's going to be a hard sell. How to be the best employee? Shockingly, it has nothing to do with your GPA, where you went to college or where you came from.
If you have these traits...
// Integrity (I can trust you with anything)
// Problem Solving (please think about solutions before giving up)
// Work Ethic
// Resilience (make a mistake, fine, just get back up and stay at it)
// Interpersonal skills
Those that show these skills typically do not have to ask.
Angle 2: I'm attracted and willing to compensate people who are called to the mission I'm leading. Come to me with a commitment that you want to be here, you are called to be doing what you're doing, and you have no desire to church/job jump just to make more money, I would see that and recognize that as something I would consider in evaluating their compensation.
Senior Pastor/Church of 1,500
I would encourage someone who believes they need a raise to do the following:
1) Work your butt off and keep getting better at your craft. That honors God no matter what you get paid, plus it helps well-meaning supervisors rally for the $$ for you
2) Ask your supervisor about compensation and what the standard process for a raise looks like currently in your org
3) Make a case for how much it would help to have an XX% raise
4) Don't let it get in your crawl and become the primary issue, but recognize that compensation is a real thing that does indeed show value in a tangible way