Thread regarding IBM layoffs

High salary, but promotion never comes

i have a very high salary for my band (9) but they give me all sort of excuses not to promote me to band 10. Even heard that one reason is there are too many senior leaders already. They seem very happy with my performande, keep giving raises and stock. But no promotion, and sometimes i wonder if it is better this way. What could be going on?

by
| 7213 views | | 19 replies (last September 17, 2021)
Post ID: @OP+1aYfLMf0

19 replies (most recent on top)

Hi Band 9 is the sweet spot if you actually want to do the job you've been doing, once you hit Band 10 it is basically sales oriented, and the area most people tap out.

Band 10 was not fun.

by
|
Post ID: @1Ueod+1aYfLMf0

Bruh trust me if you're b9 in usa, your salary is not "high". B9 pmr1 is too low for ALL locations, especially high COL ones. Ibm doesn't pay pmr1, but pays 0.85 of pmr1 which is even more abysmal.
People with 5yoe make pmr1 in other companies. In FAANGS, it's new grads who make that much.

Everyone in the industry knows that ibm pays low. So don't try to get promoted and do more work, instead just chill and work hard to find a new job.

by
|
Post ID: @1Scxx+1aYfLMf0

The US Band nines who stated their salary are making big bucks compared to me. I've been B9 since late 2008 and in that time have had very tiny increases if any at all and I'm now making a base of 132k CAD per year which according to the information I'm shown is the middle of the band, although I understand they have different ranges depending on how they categorize your job and mine is categorized as support so maybe that's why the range is so much lower than what others have quoted. Would really suck to be the lowest paid band 9 here!

by
|
Post ID: @1Sgxa+1aYfLMf0

In the last couple of years, I’ve noticed quite a few DEs quit and went to other companies.
The speculation was the job scope was changed to include some sales.

So before asking for a promotion, confirm you actually want the new job scope.
If more money is the main goal, often there is salary overlap between adjacent bands.

by
|
Post ID: @8plg+1aYfLMf0

Each area has a quota for the bands.

by
|
Post ID: @8kvr+1aYfLMf0

“ Looking to leave this year for AWS, Google or Microsoft…”

Why? You’ll work your ar-e off, have higher stress and worse wlb. The pay isn’t worth it. Do your research.

by
|
Post ID: @8ubp+1aYfLMf0

$174K, Band 9, C&CS, US Atlanta. Been in this stupid company over 20 years… Looking to leave this year for AWS, Google or Microsoft…

by
|
Post ID: @5yui+1aYfLMf0

$171k band 9. Marketing. Been with ibm 10 ish years. Got a 2 percent raise. Never any stock. US east coast, not NY.

Your turn.

by
|
Post ID: @5zbm+1aYfLMf0

@1auq+1aYfLMf0 is 100% spot on! Debt limits your options. Pay yourself first!

by
|
Post ID: @2fex+1aYfLMf0

Band 10 is death row at IBM… you don’t want to get there. If you get there, IBM will make you work like a dog.

by
|
Post ID: @2ihw+1aYfLMf0

Given the anonymity of this board, I really don’t understand why you don’t post your salary. What you may think is high may actually be low. Post it and let’s see.

by
|
Post ID: @2yoj+1aYfLMf0

Define high salary. 170 k or 300 k ?

by
|
Post ID: @1yvv+1aYfLMf0

There is no such thing as “average salary” for a band. It depends on the position, and or significantly the location you are in.

There is nothing prestigious about a band 10. Band 9 is the sweet spot you want to stay in. It’s try, band 10 are the middle men with target in their back. You do not want band 10

by
|
Post ID: @1mcm+1aYfLMf0

There’s a glut of B10s in my BU and nobody will be promoted unless someone leaves/retires. Just so happens there aren’t that many retirement age B10s, and also the quality of people at B10 is pretty poor due to promotion being the only way to get pay raises. So these people aren’t exactly leaving to open up spots. Even for the few really good B10s who are ready for Band D, the same problem repeats itself: Band D ranks refuse to retire, and most of them are low quality so don’t have many exit opportunities.

by
|
Post ID: @1wfs+1aYfLMf0

Hello everyone, Can anyone tell what is the average salary of band 9?
rest assured that IBM will not able to find out who posted what here.

Thanks

by
|
Post ID: @1qnx+1aYfLMf0

You do not say how long you have been at IBM. Band 8 and 9 are career positions, and it use to take years to get to those levels. Now IBM seems to move people way to fast through the bands (before they are ready, my opinion)

as far as there being two many sr leaders, that is not true, there are to many sr people, many of those sr people are not leaders. I would not follow many of them into battle.

If you are getting stock and pay raises you need to ask yourself what do I want? Do I want the money or do I want the "status" ? In the early years I really wanted the status/promotion as I watched others get promoted. Then I realized that as long as I was making enough to pay my bills, saving the max into my 401k, living below my means and have time to spend with my family, I would be ok with just getting raises.

I decided to set a goal - to be able to retire at 55. So I learned out to invest my 401k (followed an investment newsletter) and studied investing. 55 has long come and gone, I did not retire, but the fact I could at anytime changed the way I look at the job. I was not afraid of mgt, that they might RA me.

I still worked hard, but the worry was gone.

The other nice feeling was if they did give me cr-p I could just leave, which is what finally happen a few years later. New mgt was jerking me around, so I just gave them 3 weeks notice and left at the end of the month. Have not looked back since.

I figured out that the status was not as important as the quality of life.

I have a number of friends who are bands 9 and 10 who wish they had done what I was did years ago.

This is not a look what I did post, but a you can do it too..

by
|
Post ID: @1auq+1aYfLMf0

There needs to be a b10 job to be promoted into. That means more responsibility along with a wider scope. Does that role exist?

by
|
Post ID: @zlg+1aYfLMf0

If you are still getting raises you are not at the top of the pay band for a 9. When you reach 100 % (actually 50%) of the pay scale raises will stop . So you are not over paid for a 9 .
Depending on the band overlap you could be on the very lower end of the 10 pay scale. If promoted the manager would then have to work to get your salary up to the next band mid-point. No manager wants that anymore.
A few tricks that used to work. Try to transfer to an area that needs your skill set and is willing to make the promotion part of the move. If you are not published , it is time to get some papers out in the wild. Not just the internal dog and pony show stuff.
A bench mark: a band 5 without a formal degree can easily hit 100K a year with a little overtime.

by
|
Post ID: @gbr+1aYfLMf0

Band 10s always have a target on their back at IBM. Either way, that’s the problem with IBM. They always hold back your career one way or another.

by
|
Post ID: @iba+1aYfLMf0

Post a reply

: