Friday, December 21, 2012

Requesting a Raise?

In A View from the Q this month, Paul Borawski asks "What’s your case for a raise?"

I believe in the premise that the work should speak for itself.  The first step is to establish goals.  Then, if we are successful at achieving our goals we should be recognized for the achievement.  In a work environment that recognition must come as a merit increase.  Therefore, the case for a raise must be established during the goal setting stage not upon completion of the activities.  If our work takes us above and beyond the established goals, then the goals should be adjusted within the cycle and not upon completion of the cycle period.


2012 recap - 2013 goals

At the beginning of 2012 I established personal and professional goals.  I am posting the goals and results below:

Personal -

I must loose 15 pounds and maintain my new weight through the year. I start the year at 187 lbs. I will lose 5 pounds for each of the next 3 months and then maintain that loss. I expect to end 2012 weighing 172 max.
           - I managed to lose 7 lbs total

Spend more quality time with my wife.
           - While Sharon might not believe we've spent more alone time together we have managed to get out sans children more in 2012 than we have since before the kids were born.  Additionally, we are planning a long weekend just the two of us for some time in the very near future.

Increase my seasonal ski days with my children from 20 to 25.
           - In a season with zero snowfall on the east coast I managed to log 22 days last season (Alex boarded 26 days).  With zero snow this season so far we are already at 1 day!

Increase my poker bank-roll by at least $20k.
          - I fell about 6 or 7k short of this goal, WSOP main event buy-in notwithstanding.

Cash at the World Series of Poker.
          - Oops I did it again - failed to cash; failed to get past day one.  Maybe in 2013!
Professional -

Achieve ISO 9001:2008 registration for the Flexible Packaging division of Tekni-Plex.
          - Our Somerville facility achieved re-registration in Dec 2012; Blauvelt is on target for a mid to late 2013 registration; Flemington should follow...

Eliminate frivolous paper from the operations of Tri-Seal Blauvelt.
          - The delay in QMS software resulted in a delay of this goal.  It is in progress now!

Reduce customer complaints by 10%.
          - Total reduction of credits from customer complaints was about 40%; number of complaints is down by about 20%.
Guide all 10 ASQ section of Region 3 to Total Quality for 2012. (This goal cannot be realized until 2013).
          - The QMP program was put on hold by SAC; therefore this goal is unacheiveable.

Help improve the overall Safety at Tri-Seal Blauvelt.
          - While the Blauvelt faciltiy is still in the bottom 3 of all Tekni-Plex facilities for DART rate we are improving.  We are now completing our second consecutive quarter without a lost time accident.

So what is on target for 2013?

Personal:

1. Lose that weight - get down to 175 max
2. Exercise 3 times per week (at least 1/2 hour on treadmill to start - expand from there)
3. Increase quality time with my wife
4. Poker:
       Cash in at least one significant tournament WSOP; Borgata Poker Open; WPT; etc.
       Increase bankroll by $20k

Professional

1. Achieve ISO registration in Blauvelt
2. Complete MiniTab Training
3. Improve the resin reprocessing process
4. Visit 6 customers
5. Implement Supplier Management including 4 key supplier audits - this is for the flexibles division