you're eligible for a raise only after you've completed one full year at izumi and co. that's not a hoop. it's so you've had a real run at the work, and we've had enough time to see how you've grown.
raises are processed twice a year: in april and in october.
the rule is simple: your raise happens at the first raise window (april or october) that falls after you've completed one full year.
that means everyone lands with a little over a year at izumi, plus a few months of runway to show how you're growing. here's how it plays out:
| when you joined | when your raise happens | example |
|---|---|---|
| april–september | october of the next year | joined may 2025 → october 2026 |
| october–march | the april after you cross a year | joined november 2025 → april 2027 |
so: if you joined after april, your raise is done the following october (once you've crossed a year). if you joined after october, it happens the april after you finish your first year.
your raise window stays the same throughout your time in the organisation.
a note on the gap: because we batch raises into two windows, the exact wait to your first raise varies a little by when you joined — anywhere from about 13 to 18 months. that's not a reflection of how we value you; it's just how fixed windows work. the longer someone waits, the more that's accounted for when the raise is decided, so nobody loses out for joining in the 'wrong' month. it's the same deal for everyone.
growing within the organisation is one thing - getting sharper at your craft, taking on more, contributing to izumi's growth. we love that.
but what we love more is when you're doing incredibly in your personal life too. and we don't mean big, objective achievements. we mean how you've grown as a person — developed your taste, travelled the world, picked up a new skill, whatever it is that's made you more you.
we believe you are more than your work. so we don't want to measure you only by what you shipped.
when you set your goals each cycle, we'd like to see at least one goal that sits outside of your organisational goals — something personal. a skill you want to pick up, a place you want to see, a part of yourself you want to grow.
we'll talk about it in your 1:1 alongside everything else. it counts.
this is the backbone of izumi's yearly growth review. it exists to give everyone a shared, honest vocabulary for what good work looks like and where each person is heading next.
a few principles we hold onto: