Not that long ago (or maybe I’m getting old) you (as a consumer of almost any ongoing service / goods) had to frequently change suppliers in order to get the best deal. The boards of companies imposed narrow minded KPIs on their executives with a heavy focus on new customer numbers and the result was often that new customers (e.g. of an energy supplier) ended up getting a much better deal than loyal, longstanding customers. Things seem to have righted themselves at least a little in recent years and the current focus seems to be more around customer satisfaction.

Sadly, this shift (which I am considering to be a Very Good Thing) hasn’t propagated very deeply into the world of employment. Specifically, it often seems necessary to change jobs in order to secure the best salary or career prospects. Even worse (in my opinion - because it demonstrates acknowledgement of exploitation) is when you secure a superior job only to have your current employer offer to “match" the offer.

If you (as an employer) aren’t adjusting your employees salary on a yearly basis in line with cost of living changes in the region that operate or changes in the market then you are failing (as a company if you can’t afford it and as an employer if you can). I’m not talking here about pay rises. These are something else and should generally correspond to an increases in capability or a change in role and responsibility.

I really believe that everyone wins in this scenario. The employee feels valued and is paid what they’re worth (rather than as little as the employer can get away with). The employer has a happy (and consequently more productive) employee as well as a reputation that will give them access to the best employees.