> Another point worth focusing on here is that raises are really determined by the business value that you're producing I mean, notionally, yeah. But that's pu

> Another point worth focusing on here is that raises are really determined by the business value that you're producing I mean, notionally, yeah. But that's putting the employer up a pedestal of competency that may not be justified. Less poetically: it's forgetting just how hard it can be to measure that value, and the role of optics and "managing up"; there's also the consideration for excellence on never-released projects; in such a case, do you or do you not deserve a raise? There's many more factors that go into "your business value"; intelligence, passion, communication, and luck (right place, right time) are some, but not all, of the factors. What you are saying is definitely correct in an ideal world, but we live in a sub-ideal world; that's why there's valuable problems to solve in the first place.