Healthcare is a very rewarding industry to work in in terms of the difference that you can make to people’s lives. But, as anyone who’s worked in the industry will tell you, it’s not always as rewarding financially. However, if you love the industry but want to land a better paycheck, there are some things you can do, check out our 5 tips to get started.

1. Switch Companies

According to WorldatWork’s 2017 Salary Budget Survey, the average raise is only 3% and research shows that those who are hired externally tend to earn more than those who get promoted into the same positions. This means that if you want to land a better paycheck quickly, you should switch companies.

“The only way to get a raise is to quit, go somewhere else for higher pay, and try to get hired back.” – anonymous employer review at Ascension

2. Do your research

That brings us on to the next point. Before you start applying elsewhere, you need to check that the grass really is greener, at least financially, at another healthcare company. Here at kununu, we have reviews from 3,739,599 current and former employees on our site for you to use. So, when you’ve made a shortlist of employers you’re interested in, make sure to read through the reviews and work out if employees there are happy with their pay and benefits. If you can, you should also try to speak to someone in your network who already works at any of these companies to find out what the pay is like.

Check out the employer you are interested in on kununu

3. Establish yourself as an expert in your field

This is more of a long-term game. But, if you’ve already got a number of years of experience within your field, then you should take some steps to establish yourself as an expert in order to access higher pay grades. To do this, we recommend looking for opportunities to speak about your work at conferences, share articles about your work on your LinkedIn profile and other social media platforms, write a book or pick up part-time work as a consultant. All of these things will help and before you know it, you’ll be getting invited to participate in TV shows or radio interviews.

“I could write a book about their MRR review cycles and processes at work.” – anonymous employer review at Honeywell

4. Cross-train and learn new skills

The best way to get a promotion is to demonstrate that you have the skills that justify getting a raise. With that in mind, we recommend keeping an eye out for relevant conferences that you could go to, or other members of staff who you could shadow. You’ll get bonus points if you tell your boss that you’ll share the insights from your training/ day of shadowing with your team. This is really a win-win, because you’ll learn new skills to keep you motivated at work and your boss will get your insights in return AND consider you for a promotion.

“Very challenging and make us keep learning new technologies.” – anonymous employer review at American Megatrends

5. Work on your leadership skills

Another fantastic way to land a better paid job within healthcare is to move into a management role. And, it’s easier than you might think. If you’ve got years of experience in your field and have taken on a lot of responsibility, then you should think of ways to hone your leadership skills in order to convince your management team to promote you into a leadership position. One way to do this is to offer to mentor a more junior member of staff, or take on a leadership position in a charity or non-profit. Check out these management roles that you should consider.

“I quickly became friends with those in my team, and made mentors of those training me.” – anonymous employer review at Populus Group

6. Change your career

This is a more radical approach to getting a raise, but if you’re convinced that you could earn more in a different position within healthcare then now’s the time to go for it. Forget about any barriers to entry, focus on what you bring to the table and work out how you could bring value to a new role. Fortune favors the brave, so get out there.

Before you get serious about it, though, have a look at our 6 tips for changing careers within healthcare.

Now we’ve armed you with these tips it’s time to go out and get what you think you deserve! Good luck getting that raise!

This article originally appeared on Kununu.

Susanna Kahr

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