Eastern Oklahoma Catholic July/August 2010 : Page 13
D i o c e s a n b r i e f s w o r k l i f e No raise is really a pay cut Q: A: Sister M. Therese Gottschalk After 40-plus years, Sister Therese will make a transition to new role at St. John Sister M. Therese Gottschalk, S.S.M., St. John Health System president and chief executive officer, has announced she intends to transition to a new ministry in her long tenure at the health system founded by the Sisters of the Sorrowful Mother. Sister Therese will continue to serve on the St. John Health System Board of Directors, expand her role with St. John’s mission integration services and continue responsibilities as president of Marian Health System. St. John Health System is sponsored by Mar-ian Health System, one of the nation’s largest Catholic health-care networks. Under Sister Therese’s leadership, St. John Health System has grown into a fully integrated health-care system serving northeast Oklahoma, southeast Kansas and northwest Arkansas. For more than 40 years, Sister Therese has dedi-cated her life to providing health care and related min-istries for our community, especially the sick, the poor and the powerless,” said Bob Sullivan, chairman of the St. John Health System Board of Directors. “Sister Therese’s wisdom and leadership, as well as her com-passion and desire for quality health care, have been essential to the success and viability of St. John Health System. We appreciate her dedication in serving as our CEO, and look forward to her continued, long-term involvement,” Mr. Sullivan said. An executive search firm will conduct a national and internal candidate search for Sister Therese’s succes-sor. St. John Health System anticipates the transition to occur in early 2011. My company just announced that there will be no raises this year. I started this job a year ago at what was supposed to be a probationary salary, with a substantial raise after a year of good per-formance. How can I go about talking to my boss about making an exception to the “no raise” rule in my case? In my experience, there are situations where an organi-zation will make an excep-tion to the “no raises this year” rule; it is when an individual’s contribu-tions are so outstanding that the organization wants to avoid the risk of the individual leaving for another opportunity. At the same time, I do not recall one instance of the policy being adjusted because someone initiated the conversation and asked for the raise. Should you do so, if the company is not inclined to offer a raise, you run the risk of shining a negative light on yourself. Consequently, you are left with two options: 1) secure a better-compensated opportunity elsewhere – and continue to do your ultimate best at your current employer until you do so, and 2) contribute through your present job at such a unique level that the value of your contributions is recognized and rewarded. I would begin the latter by reviewing the goals and objectives for the orga-nization, for your department and for yourself. Once you feel you have a thorough understanding of these factors, ask to meet with your manager to clarify any priorities upon which he or she is focusing. Once you have that clarity, end your meeting with a statement of how you plan to invest extra effort to help achieve the organization’s goals. Next, periodically meet with your manager to review your progress. Without overstating your case, you need to ensure that your efforts remain on target and are recognized. Once you have done so – repeatedly – across multiple evaluation factors, the choice as to whether or not you receive a raise is in the orga-nization’s hands. If you receive a raise, you have achieved your objective. If you have not received a raise, then you have established several key performance factors that can be incorporated into both your resume and future employment interview discussions. In either case, by approaching your situation in this proactive manner, you are demonstrating that you are worth more money, not just asking for more money. You asked, “How do I go about talking to my boss…?” Perhaps the answer is also found in James 2:14: faith and works. Although James was writing about salvation, it is not too far a stretch to see the applicability of his wisdom to your situation. Have faith and work hard. – Nick Synko is the author of Future @ Work, An Employee Survival Guide for the 21st Century. abbot and doctor of the Church | Aug. 20 St. Pius X, pope Aug. 21 | St. Rose of Lima, virgin Aug. 23 | Feast of St. Bartholomew, apostle Aug. 24 | St Joseph Calasanz, priest Aug. 25
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