Salaries - do Job Titles really matter?

To answer the question in the title: yes, job titles *really* matter. I've known a lot of people who were more interested in having a higher-status job title than a pay rise. And unfortunately, that can sometimes lead business leaders to think that awarding a higher-status job title is a cheap alternative to a pay rise. But HR professionals should be alert to the shift in dynamic that can follow from such status rises, particularly if the details of salaries are confidential - because it is easy for others to assume that a rise in status is accompanied by a rise in pay with no evidence to the contrary.

Also, a rise in status will lead to a rise in behaviour that can be disruptive or unwelcome. And, crucially, a rise in status will mean an increase in perceived legal authority that can lead to auditors or - worse - tribunals finding that corporate decisions are being made by individuals who ought not to have corporate decision-making power, but it has been bestowed upon them by a high-status job title at odds with their intended role.

All that said, let's go back to the OP.

Kelly-Ann, what you have is a grievance on several points:

1. Your job description is no longer an accurate reflection of your duties and should be reviewed.

2. You would like your professional status to be increased by being supported to pursue a Level 5 qualification. This is being "looked at". You would like a definitive answer, now, on whether your employer is going to commit to support this or not.

3. You feel that your recent pay rise does not accurately reflect the increase in responsibility, both administrative and managerial, that you have taken on and would like it to be reviewed.

4. You would like your job title changed to reflect your increased responsibility.

Of these, I would venture to suggest that the last is, of all of them, the least important. You're not going to be made an HR Manager if you already report to an HRBP. You could be called an "HR Officer" or "HR Advisor" or even "Senior HR Coordinator" but what difference will it really make to your status or CV to have such a title? I suspect, very little.

If you could have the first three points settled to your satisfaction (or, at least, settled) you would probably be a good deal more satisfied than you would be with an inflated job title.

Of course job titles *really* matter to some people but conversely matter not one bit to others.

It rather depends on the type of person you are and the type of organisation you come from. They tend (generalisation) to be more important in traditional more hierarchical organisation and they "tend" to be less important in more dynamic organisations in my experience and opinion.

As HR professionals sit key we try and move away from generalisations as far as possible and look at what motivates and engages individuals. Be that type of work, hours, title, salary, status or even company car :-) and see how/if we can meet these needs within a wider corporate HR strategy. One size never fitted all and it certainly doesn't now.

Of course job titles *really* matter to some people but conversely matter not one bit to others.

It rather depends on the type of person you are and the type of organisation you come from. They tend (generalisation) to be more important in traditional more hierarchical organisation and they "tend" to be less important in more dynamic organisations in my experience and opinion.

As HR professionals sit key we try and move away from generalisations as far as possible and look at what motivates and engages individuals. Be that type of work, hours, title, salary, status or even company car :-) and see how/if we can meet these needs within a wider corporate HR strategy. One size never fitted all and it certainly doesn't now.