The most important advice for anyone asking for a raise: Know your value.

This is especially true for purchasing professionals, because buyers are working in a field that's red hot right now. Demand for purchasing and supply management pros has exploded. Results of Purchasing's most recent annual salary survey show compensation rising by 6% last year. That's more than the average for engineers, whose raises amounted to 3%, and logistics professionals, whose compensation actually fell 4.5%, and, in fact, most other professionals working in the U.S. who got increases of 3.6% as determined by human resources consultants.

Tonia Deal, president of Tonia Deal Consultants in Hudson, Ohio, says that some positions, with such titles as sourcing manager or commodity manager, that paid $70,000 to $75,000 a few years ago, now pay $90,000 to $100,000, with demand especially strong for purchasing and supply managers with project management experience. Companies in the services industry also are searching for purchasing professionals with experience in manufacturing who've worked for companies that have world-class supply management operations.

Deal and other recruiters say they can determine a purchasing pro's value simply by looking at his or her resume. That's their job. She says that a candidate at market value could receive a raise of 12%–15% if he or she accepts a new position in supply management. But if you are not ready to look for a new job, and are actually quite satisfied with what you have, there are ways to ensure that you're being well compensated for the value you add to your company.

The trick is to approach the meeting with your boss as you would any other negotiation: Do your homework before taking a seat at the table.

Purchasing professionals—both those working in the field and those who've moved on to related careers alike—agree that good places to start are with Purchasing's annual salary survey issue which the magazine publishes each December and the Institute for Supply Management's (ISM) career center (ism.ws/careercenter). Other suggestions include such resources as the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Monster.com and help-wanted advertising listed in local and national publications.

Carla Lallatin, president, Lallatin & Associates, a Rego Park, N.Y.-based supply chain management consultant with 25 years of experience working in purchasing and materials management, suggests that purchasing professionals who refer to results of salary surveys consider how the figures relate to their own situations. "You need to look at the salary survey, keeping in mind the industry that you're working in and where in the country your company is located. Also remember the size of your company in terms of annual revenue and how much it spends with suppliers."

A good time to approach your manager about your salary is if you've been with a company for a period of time and have not had a raise and your research shows that you're not compensated at a level on par with your peers, or if your responsibilities have significantly increased, she says.

Lallatin suggests putting together a business case for the meeting with management, a skill many purchasing professionals already may have honed. "You need to think about how to present this in a convincing, succinct way," she says.

In these situations, purchasers have to be prepared to speak in the language of their managers. "Typically, that means your contributions to the bottom line," she says. "You have to be able to show these contributions, and you have to think of your manager's agenda and what she or he is held accountable for." Then, buyers can bring other issues into the conversation, such as figures that show your company's compensation for purchasing professionals may be out of line with its competitors or other companies in the same industry.

Purchasers may also want to mention training or certification they've recently received such as a master's degree or C.P.M. (Certified Purchasing Manager) designation. "There's a whole variety of things a person can do to make him or her more valuable to the organization that could come into the conversation," says Lallatin.

If the outcome isn't as you expect, you want to know why: Is it because your manager doesn't agree with your business case? Did you not present it well? Or is it because you need to do something or learn something that you haven't?

"If your manager says that it's something the two of you can discuss again in a few months, then the door is still open," Lallatin says. "What do you need to do, and more important, what does your manager think you need to do, in those few months? Usually, the way to find out is to ask."

Yet if you truly think you possess the skills and credentials and you're not getting compensated in a way you think is fair and you don't see any hope of that changing in the future, perhaps you should consider looking for a new position.

Lallatin suggests purchasing pros take advantage of training or continuous education opportunities offered by their companies. "Look for every chance to add one more credential to your resume whether planning on a job change or not," she says. "It just makes sense in today's competitive world. If your company does not support training or reimburse tuition, then consider making an investment in yourself."

Maureen Donnelly, senior manager, asset management, supply management, at Ryder System Inc. in Miami, says she typically negotiates her salary before she begins her new job and reviews it and her contributions to the company at the appropriate time, usually during an annual performance review period. She does her research before she is hired and plugs her current compensation data into salary calculators to learn her value in areas of the country she's considering for a new position.

During the negotiation, she expects her manager to respond to her request with, "I will take that under advisement." She suggests others in similar positions not threaten their bosses by coming back with, "I have another offer" or compare themselves with their peers. Not getting the raise you believe you deserve, however, may be a good signal that it's time to start looking for a new job.

If you really like the company and you believe management is treating you fairly, the discussion will be open and honest as to why they can or can't give you what you think you deserve, Donnelly says. "If you work for a Fortune 500 company, there are usually internal regulations on compensation. Otherwise, everyone will always come in and think they deserve something more."

Paul J. Erickson, a supply management consultant and consultant with Dale Carnegie Training, Performance Training Associates, in Waltham, Mass., recommends that purchasing pros begin the process by negotiating goals and objectives with their managers. Erickson has more than 20 years of strategic sourcing experience in the financial services industry with such companies as State Street Bank & Trust Co. in Boston.

"You need to sit down with the person you report to and get aligned with the mission of the corporation, its goals and objectives, as well as those of your department or organization, and then expand on what your goals and objectives ought to be within the company," he says. "The last thing anyone wants to do is go to a review a year later and find out what they are doing is 180 degrees away from what the company is trying to do."

These are the objectives you need to meet satisfactorily to get a raise, he says. Adding to them, and exceeding expectations will help you negotiate an even higher salary. "You need to have those stretch goals in there," he says. "This applies to all professions, but perhaps more so for supply managers because we have so many matrices that we can be measured by that can really help us."

Erickson reminds buyers that compensation goes beyond salary. It includes bonuses, stock options and benefits.

Next, the purchasing pro needs to make these goals and objectives reviewable at least quarterly. "You need to broadcast what you are doing," he says. " You need to be your own advocate, and you have to be smart about it. You need to meet with your manager at the end of the quarter and review your progress because goals and objectives change. The final review then should be nothing more than a pleasant conversation based on what you've done for the year because you kept your boss in the loop. It avoids the issue of 'Oops I missed it. I am not totally there.'"

A manager (an individual contributor manages projects; a manager manages people) needs to be looking at objectives that are quantifiable, such as reducing delivery, improving acceptance of materials, or setting up a supply chain in China.

He also suggests that purchasing professionals get involved in projects outside the company, for such associations as ISM and its local affiliates, or volunteer for organizations such as the United Way. "You have to make yourself visible to management so they see you as a complete manager," he says. "If you have visions of a C-level type position, then you have to step outside and show that you have people skills. These skills are going to move you beyond others who meet their goals or even exceed their goals."

After all that, there comes a time when a purchasing pro is ready to move on to a new position in another company. How to tell when the time is right?

1. A purchaser needs to look at his or her professional growth path. Define yourself in terms of what you want to accomplish in supply management, Erickson says.
2. Who are you working with now? Are they going to help get you to your goals?
3. Compare the performance of the organization to the first two. If you see that the company is not heading in the same direction, then it may be time to put out feelers. "I was at a company that moved purchasing to engineering which meant that all the buyers went to work for project managers," says Erickson. "It was not a good environment for purchasing, so people left."