Shark Tank's Anupam Mittal sparks debate on 35% hike demand for changing jobs

Shark Tank judge Anupam Mittal sparks debate on 35% hike demand while changing jobs, asks ‘Ye standard kisne banaya?’

Anupam Mittal, Shark Tank India judge and founder and CEO of People Group and Shaadi.com, has sparked a heated debate online after questioning the reason why candidates are demanding a 35 per cent hike to switch jobs.Taking a jab at job seekers asking for a 35 per cent hike for switching jobs, Mittal wrote a mock dialogue on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), “When can you join? In one month. Salary? 35% increment. Why 35%? Standard hai sir. W**? Ye standard kisne banaya?”At time of writing, at 8.46 pm on October 27, the viral post had been viewed at least 1 lakh times on the platform. It had also generated more than 290 comments, some 35 quote posts, and over 800 likes.

‘There is an entitlement of some arbitrary standard'

Known for his vocal engagement on social media, Anupam Mittal's post seemed to receiving significant push back. Four hours later, he followed it up with another post clarifying why he questioned the percentage demanded in salary increase by job seekers.“The point that most of you geniuses missed is that there is an entitlement of some arbitrary standard. If a role deserves it, one should demand even 2x, why just 35%? Ultimately, the market decides,” he stated.

‘Why can't people ask? 35% is less…': How netizens reacted

Anupam Mittal's post generated heated debate on salary hikes and increments on X, with many netizens calling out the founder for his stance on the matter.A social media user commented on the post saying, “35% to kam bola (35% is less)… It is more than 50% these days. Nowadays, candidates are asking salary based on skill.” To this Mittal agreed that “value (increment) should be commensurate with skill.”Another user joked, “Sir pichle round ke valuation se 35% premium to deserve karte hain, that's VC standard.” (Sir, they deserve at least 35% premium for the last round of valuation, that's VC standard).One netizen also asked the entrepreneur, “Why can't people ask for a higher increment when you can ask for higher equity all the time?” To this Mittal replied: “They can ask for sure but market will determine what they get no?” and the commenter added, “Surely. Giving that hike depends on the market, value-add, budget, and importance of the role. However, I believe asking for more is totally okay, if you can back it. Maybe ”standard hai" is not the way to go about it.Another netizen questioned, “Okay… would you want to give 100% then?” and Mittal responded, "Absolutely. If that's what the role demands. But I certainly don't suggest paying some made up ‘standard'.Another user also asked Mittal what he deems as the best way to go about asking for a hike, “What do you think makes sense to ask for in these situations? It is quite hard to quantify. Shouldn't HR team reaching out mention the salary they are ready to offer?” To this Mittal replied, “I think it should be a function of being paid in line with the role. Whether that's 10%, 35% or 100%. Ultimately, market decides your value, not u so idea should be to maximise capability. But one cannot ask for 35% coz its a ‘standard'. For me that's a reject right away.”

‘Offer as per your budget… imaginary value, imaginary market… share salary band'

But netizens were unconvinced. Many said that companies do not post a salary band upfront in the job posting, which would eliminate this conversation later down the line. Others added that it is company HRs who use previous salary as benchmark for the new offer and candidates are complying. While, some others also stated that “market value” is too vague a term to quantify in percentage terms when talking salary and increments. Here's a look:

Source: LiveMint
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