As a woman in marketing, the TC’s here depress me

Fidelity Investments
Waterford

Go to company page Fidelity Investments

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CVS Pharmacy
Waterford
Apr 6 228 Comments

I have 13 years under my belt with primarily Fortune 500 companies and feel totally stagnant. I got Covid and had to go on medical leave due to prolonged symptoms and feel like I’m just being indirectly punished as a result. No pay raise for the second review period in a row due to my salary being on the “higher scale” for my role according to my company.

TC is about $180k ($140k base and about $40k total with bonus & incentive shares). I’m Director level - (7) at Fidelity.

I’m grateful to still be working and the company has been great as a whole but also am feeling the pinch more with inflation. Seeing some of the TC’s listed on this app for various roles across industries is depressing me. I’m a career crossroads now - thinking of getting my MBA or going into a different field if possible but hoping to get some input from others who work in similar roles (marketing director level) to see if I’m just being underpaid. #salarycomparison

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TOP 228 Comments
  • Chewy
    sPRf85

    Go to company page Chewy

    sPRf85
    Woman here in tech (~8 years experience total) making about $500K, have an MBA from a top 3 school and started off in the financial services industry. Happy to chat through making the switch or what you may be going through! Please remember that people in tech are not magically more talented than other industries...it's just a hot industry right now so I'm all for helping people get in here! 🙂
    Apr 7 10
    • Chewy
      sPRf85

      Go to company page Chewy

      sPRf85
      A lot of higher up women love to mentor. In general, I think people love to sound like they know what they're talking about so I'd be surprised if folks actively say no when you ask for mentorship. The mistake most people make when asking for mentorship is 1) they don't drive the conversation with specific questions, 2) don't proactively set up time, 3) haven't already done their research on the question they're asking, etc. I decline most mentorship invites if I see that the person hasn't already put in some effort beforehand to answer their own question or ask super vague questions which indicate they haven't already put some thought into it beforehand.
      Apr 8
    • Oracle
      VMOk87

      Go to company page Oracle

      PRE
      LinkedIn
      BIO
      Fresh female grad from uni :)
      VMOk87
      That makes me a little nervous actually! I would say I’m quite good at making small talk. I don’t read from a script and I genuinely try to get to know the person I’m asking advice from. What kind of super vague questions do you mean? I don’t think i ask vague questions but I thought id ask just in case I’m being oblivious
      Apr 8
  • If you are being passed over for pay raises because you have already maxed out your salary at your level, it’s time to start looking. The promotions after director level are few and far between. Most of the salaries in here are from people in tech that get a ton of refreshers. That’s where most of my salary comes from too.

    TC - $340k (about 50/50 salary and stock)
    YOE 18
    Apr 6 6
    • Fidelity Investments
      Waterford

      Go to company page Fidelity Investments

      PRE
      CVS Pharmacy
      Waterford
      OP
      Fair point. The current role is unfulfilling (lost all of the awesome projects I was leading when I had to go out on leave) but the company is solid. I’d consider looking internally at another role too.
      Apr 7
    • JLL
      anon56913

      Go to company page JLL

      anon56913
      I recently moved internally for these exact reasons. I did get a bump right before, but the advancement opportunities weren’t there regardless, so I went into another area of the business where there seems to be more growth.
      Apr 9
  • Amazon / Sales
    enlitn.me

    Go to company page Amazon Sales

    enlitn.me
    You don’t owe the company anything. They’ve been good to you because you’ve been good to them. If you’ve been thinking you’re stagnant for a while then make the move while market is hot. Tons of amazing fintech companies out there that can use your experience. Literally every big tech (google, Fb, Amazon, Apple) has something going with payment solutions. You should be able to almost double your TC by going with tech. Dm me if you find an interesting position at Amazon and want a referral.
    Apr 6 10
    • Fidelity Investments
      Waterford

      Go to company page Fidelity Investments

      PRE
      CVS Pharmacy
      Waterford
      OP
      Awesome, thanks for the encouragement!
      Apr 7
    • Fastly
      NoUsrnm

      Go to company page Fastly

      NoUsrnm
      Taking on MBA debt in your 30’s is definitely not worth it for marketing. There are enough courses online to up your skill in certain areas, even a pragmatic marketing certification says a lot about your desire to stay on top of best practices and trends without setting yourself back 5-6 figures. I did my MBA from a top 3 school in my 20’s and don’t feel I needed it (tech product marketing), I definitely wouldn’t do it now in my mid 30’s
      Apr 10
  • Zoom
    zoom-zoom

    Go to company page Zoom

    zoom-zoom
    Try to get a marketing job at a mid sized and growing tech company. Tech pays higher than other industries for all roles, not just engineering. Somewhere like a Fintech, or a social network, or a SaaS. You could probably make at least a few tens of thousands more than your current TC.
    Apr 6 2
  • This comment was deleted by original commenter.

    • New
      Triix

      New

      Triix
      Her gender is relevant because controlled studies - where role, education, & experience are similar - show that women are generally paid less than men (gender wage gap). The 2021 Mckinsey 'Women in the Workplace' study showed that for every 100 men promoted to manager, only 86 women are promoted - although men and women ask for promotions at the same rate. Obviously much improvement has been made, but we are still living in a patriarchal society where women are still valued less than men - so yes, her gender is relevant to her pay.
      Apr 7