Ask for a raise in a scheduled conversation, backed by a one-page evidence document: what you've delivered since your pay was last set, how your scope has grown, and what the market pays for your role now. Time it to budget cycles and fresh wins, name a specific number, and treat a no as the start of a documented plan, not the end.
Raises are decided when budgets are set, which is usually one to three months before review season — by the time reviews happen, the pool is already allocated. Ask ahead of that window, not after it. The other good moments are catalysts: a shipped win, a scope expansion, a departed teammate whose work you absorbed. Asking in the afterglow of visible delivery beats asking on an anniversary.
Avoid asking during a crisis, right after company bad news, or as a surprise ambush in a 1:1. "I'd like to set up a conversation about my compensation" a few days ahead lets your manager arrive as your advocate with information, rather than as a defender caught off guard.
Build one page with three sections. Delivered: five to eight concrete outcomes since your pay was last set, with numbers. Grown: how today's scope exceeds the role you were priced for — systems owned, people mentored, work absorbed. Market: two or three data points on current pay for your role and level, from posted ranges and salary data, establishing the band rather than cherry-picking its top.
The script: "Since my compensation was last set, I've delivered X, Y, and Z, and my scope now includes A and B, which weren't part of the original role. Market data for this scope shows a band of N to M. I'd like to get my base to N-target. What would it take to make that happen?" That final question matters — it converts the conversation from verdict to plan, and enlists your manager in the mechanics.
A yes usually arrives later, after your manager runs the machinery — so end the meeting with a follow-up date, and send the one-pager afterward so your case is forwardable verbatim. A "not now" gets converted into a documented plan: "What specifically would need to be true in six months, and can we write it down and book the review?" Vague encouragement without criteria is a no wearing a costume; criteria in writing are a commitment.
A hard no with no path — especially against solid market data — is information about your ceiling there. That's when the outside option becomes the plan: the market pays for scope growth reliably; internal compensation processes only sometimes do. Update the resume while the delivered-wins list is fresh; it's already written — it's the first section of your one-pager.
One to three months before review season, when budget pools are still being set — or right after a visible win or scope expansion. Schedule the conversation in advance so your manager arrives prepared to advocate, not ambushed.
Anchor to market data for your current scope, not a percentage of your current salary. If posted ranges and salary data show a band, target the point that matches your evidence. Scope-based asks with data behind them travel through approval chains.
Convert it into a written plan: what specific outcomes unlock the raise, by when, reviewed on what date. Criteria in writing are a commitment; vague encouragement is a soft no. A hard no against solid market data means test the market.
Your raise document and your resume are the same evidence in two formats — run yours through the free scorer and keep both ready before you need either.
