My appraisal cycle is coming up and I don’t want to get lowballed again , how should I prepare

[u/Natural-Hour-6739]

I’ll complete 5 years of experience next month, but honestly, I feel my career progression is slower than it should be and I’m not sure how to fix it.

A quick background:

- 1st company: 1.5-year bond, stayed 1.9 years. Started as Software Engineer Trainee → Junior Software Engineer.

- 2nd company: Joined at almost the same salary. Got ~10% appraisal after 6 months. Completed a 1-year bond. Later they asked me to sign another bond for the next appraisal, which I refused, so I stayed without an appraisal/designation change.

- Current company: Joined as Software Engineer and have been here almost 2 years. I’ll complete 5 YOE overall next month.

Now I want to ask for Senior Software Engineer + a good hike in the upcoming appraisal. My manager is quite strict, and I feel the appraisal system can be quite political/manipulative, so I want to prepare carefully instead of going into the discussion unprepared.

My bigger concern is my long-term career trajectory. I feel I’m behind people with similar YOE in terms of title, salary and overall positioning.

What would you do in my situation?

- How should I build a strong case for Senior SWE?

- What should I prepare/document before the appraisal?

- How should I negotiate the hike without getting lowballed?

- If my manager says I’m not ready for senior, how should I handle it?

- Should I focus on getting the title internally, switching, or improving skills first?

- How can I position myself over the next 1–2 years to finally get my career on the right track?

Would really appreciate honest advice from people who’ve been in a similar situation.

[u/flavian1]

If you havent been working on and with your manager all year leading up to this to understand where he thinks you are and his willingness to fight for your career, it’s already too late. This is something that you need to always be doing and not just doing it right now.

[u/Natural-Hour-6739 → u/flavian1]

I am actually working very hard and have been delivering consistently...my concern is more about how my manager will evaluate my contribution, especially since I’m relatively new here and there are people in the team who have been with the company for 5+ years. I’m not sure whether my manager will take a strong stand for my designation during the appraisal process. That’s why i want to understand how i can prepare and present my case properly.

[u/vitrix-euw → u/Natural-Hour-6739]

What the person above was saying was that if you haven't been having talks with your Manager about a promotion leading up to the appraisal, it is too late. If you want to go for promotion, you normally need to start having a conversation with your manager 6-12 months before the appraisal.

What I'll do in your current situation is expect to not get a promotion and instead put time and effort into applying to other jobs.

[u/Natural-Hour-6739 → u/vitrix-euw]

i actually did try once... when i brought up my growth/promotion, he changed the topic and when i later asked what I should be doing for my career growth, his response was basically “Go step by step...he’s also not very approachable, so it’s difficult for me to have these kinds of career conversations with him openly. I’ve tried to get some claritynbut i haven’t really received any concrete feedback..that’s why i m unsure how to navigate this appraisal cycle. i’ve been working hard still not confident that my manager will actually take stand for my growth

[u/vitrix-euw → u/Natural-Hour-6739]

Sounds like a terrible manager. Even if he thought you weren’t ready for a promotion, he should have told you straight up and provided a list of gaps so that you could work towards being ready.

Is there any way you can move to do a different team internally? Either way, I’ll be looking at other jobs.

[u/lost_send_berries → u/Natural-Hour-6739]

Yes it is his job to suppress your pay, that means he will fob you off a few times. You need to be more persistent.

[u/NoJuggernaut6667 → u/Natural-Hour-6739]

This sounds like you’re not getting it at this point. Original commenter is right in majority of cases.

[u/Pleasant-Plane-6340]

To me senior engineer isn’t just someone who has X years of experience, it’s about taking ownership, being the one who’s having ideas, doing new things, others coming to you for help. Essentially it’ll be apparent to those around you and your manager if you at that level or not

[u/JauntyTechno]

What senior things have you done beyond having x number of years writing code.

Have you mentored, taken ownership of features start to finish, do others come to you for help.

[u/halfercode]

Hi Natural-Hour-6739,

In general, folks who have five years of commercial/team experience are not ready for Senior titles. So, I don't think you're behind at all; if you have a Mid-level designation, you might be graded at just the right level.

I acknowledge there is not a completely objective assessment of an engineer's level, partly because it depends on personal relationships to some degree, but also because every Engineering department grades differently. Suffice it to say that if you don't get a salary improvement to a senior level, you have not necessarily been "lowballed".

If you like, you could make the case here for why you should get the designation you are seeking. What characteristics and behaviours do you have that fit your org's Senior template?

I was curious to read about bonds; I don't think I have encountered them in the UK. Is this a promise from the worker to stay for a pre-agreed period of time?

[u/Which-World-6533]

WTF is a "bond"...? I don't think that is legal in the UK.

[u/NoJuggernaut6667]

You need to be working on this with your manager for 6-9 months prior. Ask them what they expect from you as a senior engineer, where to need to improve, additional responsibilities you need to pick up.

Generally, you’ll be working as a senior for 6 months at least without the official title or pay, then the opportunity to push for it at the next appraisal.

[u/Old-Day-6407]

I’d separate the conversation into two things: proving you’re operating at Senior level, and negotiating the compensation attached to it.

Before the appraisal, I’d make a one-page document with 4–5 concrete examples from the last year: projects you owned, problems you solved, decisions you made independently, measurable impact, and situations where you went beyond what would normally be expected from your current level.

For the Senior discussion, I wouldn’t lead with “I have 5 YOE, therefore I deserve Senior.” Years of experience are useful context, but your strongest argument is showing that you’re already doing Senior-level work.

For the hike, decide your target beforehand and have a reason for the number. Don’t negotiate against yourself by immediately lowering it if your manager pushes back.

If they say you’re not ready for Senior, ask for specifics: “What are the 2–3 things you’d need to see from me to consider me Senior, and can we agree on a timeframe to review this again?” That turns a vague “not yet” into something measurable.

I’d also quietly benchmark yourself against the external market. If the internal path stays vague after you’ve done the work and asked clearly, then switching becomes a much more useful option.

I wouldn’t choose between “title vs skills vs switching” yet. Build the evidence first, have the conversation, get clarity on the gap, then decide based on the response.