How to Ask Your Boss for a Raise

Sounds pretty good to me, I'm glad you say don't name other workers.
In fact I'd say don't make any comparisons at all because if someone use that argument with me I'd simply say "Will you be satisfied if I give them all a pay cut?!"
It should be about what you contribute above and beyond your basic job description.
Del

Jake - Great advice. I would add that most engineers are over-achievers. They typically go above and beyond the "call of duty" and many hope to be compensated for it.

Some additional advice I received from my brother once:

"One thing I would think long and hard about before the meeting is, does the company need an engineer of your caliber? I know, you know, and they probably know what you are worth... but they are only going to pay for what they need. You make a good case for what you can do and I think you are making a decent case for what the company needs, but don't lose sight of the idea that you are most likely overqualified and they are going to recieve the benefit of the fact you are a hard worker."

I would add that when determining your value add to the company, make sure it is needed, before you bring to light that the company may be able to fill your role with an Engineering Technician at a lower cost. If you are working harder than you need to, which we all do, we can't blame the company we work for for taking advantage of it.

Interesting perspective.

I'm finding that there are two more issues that are holding strength in the modern market.

The first is the ability AND willingness to share with and encourage others. Be known to be a mentor and guide outside your specific role. Gone are the days when being the only one who could perform a specific role or task meant power. Now such behavious is regarded as insecurity.

The other is the way that you actually perform for the other 220 or so days that you are at work each year. Pay rises will not be associated with one or two specific single events but on total demonstrated performance.

It still all comes back to the local market though. If you're the only employed GIS systems administrator in the town and there are one or two qualified applicants asking for work, then these are the times to consolidate your position by talking with your manager and seeking feedback on their expectations.

GA - That is the way I look at it.

Loyalty only counts when the company wants to screw you. Come layoff time the company bosses often remember who kisses their backside more often rather than who does the company the most good.

The immediate response from 98% of employers will be " That's ok, enjoy your new job, don't bother clearing your desk, we'll send any personal stuff to you with the seperation certificate. Bye."

Blackmailing only gets you a cab ride home.

Depends on your value to the company.

One tends to get what they are worth.

Depends on the company

there is no "one solution" to this question.

the OP is a typical HR type

You are right - HR type - we know what they are worth!

When I was working for "companies" I always had an annual performance review. The things you have included were all there, plus requested input to the reviewer (boss) from people or departments that I had worked with to solve problems or implement solutions of one kind or another. When consulting I always asked for an honest assessment of my work/performance for future references.

I think what your saying is respect should be mutual.

In the past I have looked at what I am doing in the company and realised I might be getting less than I thought I could earn elsewhere.. I have checked the market, went for a couple of interviews, and found that I could probably make a considerable contribution elsewhere and the new employer was keen to get me on their payroll at a considerable premium over the previous employer. I then considered approaching my employer, but thought "why ask for a raise that I know I have got by moving elsewhere. When I have told my (old) employer he has invariably offerred to match or beat the other offer but by then it is too late. I do not want to work in a place where I feel I have blackmailed (by threatening to leave) my employer as it is not a good strategy for a good working relationship. I have adopted the view over the years that it is more in the employer's interest to make sure the package is right if he is interested in staff retention as he will be involved in the costs of hiring and retraining.

The employer I stayed with longest (12 years) made the adjustments and I never had to ask for a raise. Why did I leave? A competitor bought the group on condition the group closed the facility in which I was working as their own division (competing with us) were struggling. What did I do then? The competitor phoned me to head up their engineering division at a higher salary, which I did!

I have always simply just said to my bosses "I'm worth more than you are paying me Joe". And be prepared to back up that statement, just as you would back up any statement you make at work.

If you would rather be happy in your little boat, then don't rock it then.

This comment is not off topic at all, Guest....the fear that you will be shown the door is a very real one if you "rock the boat". And there is the possibillity that you can price yourself out of the job market. After all, if you were the supervisor, who would you downsize? The new guy with the beginner's low salary, or the established guy who costs twice as much. And we all know that the year before your pension kicks in is the most dangerous because they are looking for a way to dodge paying out the pension. And that leads inevitably to the question, how will will you survive if you end up fired.

That is quite the whip hand the employer has! And many, if not most of my collegues live with this reality every day. And in this present economic climate, rocking the boat in even such a minor thing as a pay rise, can be VERY stressful!

This, I believe, is symptomatic of a toxic workplace. There are antidotes to this toxin however...the OP is in the business of finding such antidotes. You probably know some others, but you won't find the answers in a text book. Everybody is already performing at or very near their maximum productivity, so it is not "job performance" which will make you attractive to keep. Its communication. There are a hundred ways to improve communication with your co-workers, improve communication with your supervisors to the point where it will become easy to say "hey boss, you need to pay more money". A hundred things you can do that have nothing to do with your "job" but everything to do with improving your work place. They keep people that improve the workplace you know. (Okay, I'll throw in two specific examples...I once brought in a can of paint and painted the washroom because it really, really needed it. I did it on my off day, and didn't tell anybody. But the word seemed to have got around anyway. The squadron commander personally thanked me. The second was not me, but another fella, who stepped up and called all our suppliers asking for donations to a door prize for our annual Sqadron picnic and fly-in. The smoozing possiblities were outstanding for the suppliers, the bosses really benefited from the experience, and eventually the guy that did that was promoted. What does THAT tell ya? He became valuable. He was looked up to. His stress level was pretty much zero.)

So, to oversimplify a complex working relationship, if stress is a syptom of toxicity in the work place, work to reduce the stress. The things that you do to reduce the stress will result in a less toxic working environment, and will make it easier to ask for a raise, a corner office, a promotion, or a lateral transfer. At the very least, it will make it more pleasant to come to work.

You broke my basketball pole on PURPOSE!