I joined a growing startup (between 50-100 employees) a few months ago. Since I joined, the two other employees in my department have left and our manager has left. Main reason being they wanted more of a process and we are moving fast as a company. I actually like the job and want to make the most of it. I think there is an opportunity to grow in my leadership skills. However, I now basically have to do the work of 2-3 other people. Is it appropriate to ask for a raise? If so, how much? I am fairly compensated for the role I was hired for (base is around 150k), but my responsibilities will be expanded now.
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7They left because there is no process? Why didn't they just make a process? Something tells me that's not the real reason they left.– NelsonSep 23, 2021 at 3:17
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1They may try to hire replacements, but it will likely take quite a bit of time plus I would be the one who would onboard them, establish culture, process, etc.– WhatdoidoSep 23, 2021 at 5:11
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2@Nelson What that means is their boss (either manager or CEO) was anti-process. Its a common theme at startups. Process slows things a bit and can make you say "no" to things, where some bosses are all about speed and "yes". Read this more as "they weren't allowed to do the job in the way/with the quality they believe was correct."– Gabe SechanSep 23, 2021 at 5:38
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3 Answers
Step 1 is ask HR and/or upper management what the plan is to replace your team. Surely somebody knows that it's infeasible to have the same rate of production with 1/4 as many people, so either they're not expecting as much from you (unlikely) or they're actively hiring (more likely).
If they are actively hiring, follow up periodically on how the hiring is going. Make sure they're actually hiring, and if they give you a timeline on when you can expect someone to join your team then follow up on that timeline. Someone will join your team to alleviate your stress.
If the company isn't replacing your teammates, then something is wrong. The company isn't producing and they are't hiring people to produce. A solvent company should never shrink in size (counting open positions in total headcount; a company should always at least be hiring at the same rate as people are leaving), and certainly should not lose an entire team's worth of people. If the company just lost an entire team and isn't replacing them, that would put me at extreme fear of the company being insolvent. To protect myself, I would be looking for a way out of this company too, so that I'm not stuck holding the bag when the company goes bankrupt.
In short: no, you should not be asking for a raise. You should be asking for more help, and you should leave the company if you don't get it.
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1As well as this, make sure that you communicate your capacity to management and get some steer from them about what their priorities are. If 75% of the team has left then 75% of the work is not going to get done - so they need to decide what the important 25% is. Sep 22, 2021 at 21:05
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5I don't see why you shouldn't ask for a raise? You will be working extra hard and also be the most experienced person on your team when it has been hired. Sep 22, 2021 at 23:13
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1@DJClayworth Because it's a waste of time. If the company is hiring, they'll say no because they need the money (truthfully or not) to hire replacements for the people who left, who will be joining in short order, and so the "working extra hard" will only be for a short time. If the company is not hiring, then you should leave anyway so asking for a raise is moot. The "being the most experienced on the team" is a thing, but that might not be enough to get a raise now, depending on the company.– Ertai87Sep 23, 2021 at 4:42
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1@Ertai87 Just because they might say no is no reason not to ask. Sep 23, 2021 at 12:47
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@DJClayworth I mean that's vacuously true. But by that logic, you may as well just ask your employer for a raise always; they always "might say no". The idea of asking for a raise is that you only want to make a stink about it when you think you'll actually get it, or if there's meaningful action you can take if they do say no. In this case I don't really think either of those cases are true (you can use that as another reason to leave the company I suppose, but that's not the primary concern here; the concern is getting your team replaced)– Ertai87Sep 23, 2021 at 15:08
Possibly ask for a promotion; offer to take over the job of one of the more senior people who left, if you can handle it.
I am fairly compensated for the role I was hired for
This is your primary concern. The rest isn't your responsibility. If your job description changes then it's time to negotiate. Until then I don't see a problem here.
