Re:Numbers (Score 1)

From my experience with larger Human Resources departments, that 15% probably applies to salary "bumps" within your current rank or job title. If you get a promotion, you would likely be pushed into a different salary range. Getting a promotion depends, obviously, on your manager's appreciation of your work, combined with your manager's ability to hand out promotions. If you're on good terms with your manager, it may be as simple as just asking if they have a moment to talk, and then saying "I think that I've proven myself and am a valuable asset to the team/department/company (insert evidence here), and I think it would be appropriate for me to move up to a (whatever title) position." For some companies, the only way to move up is to get a job offer elsewhere, or at the least, start looking and casually let that information leak into the grapevine. For others, simply talking in a straightforward manner with your boss is the way to go (and the boss may actually resent having the issue forced by going out and getting a competing job offer). In any case, you want a sense of what your manager values, what the issues are that the manager has to contend with, and what they want to do vs. what they actually can do to help you. You also want to have a sense of whether your manager is a jerk or is entirely clueless ;) If it seems like you can't get promoted for whatever reason, and you feel pretty confident about your marketability, just start looking. Keep an eye on the economy and your ability to get along without a job, in case you move to a company that is intolerable or turns to layoffs to make their bottom line.