I make $63k as a project lead. Two years back, my supervisor, who was the project manager and earned twice my salary, resigned, and I took over his responsibilities. When I applied for his position, I was informed that I needed more experience and a PMP certification. After that, another project manager joined the team and became my new boss, but my workload remained the same-- our team's workload just increased.

I recently obtained my PMP certification and requested a promotion. In response, I was granted the Project Manager title and a $5k salary increase. Despite being highly valued by company VPs, who specifically request that I manage their projects, my boss claims she had to struggle hard to secure this title change and small pay raise for me. Am I being unreasonable, or is this situation absurd? PMP-certified professionals in my industry typically earn MUCH more than $68k. While I otherwise completely love my job, my colleagues, and the projects I work on, this outcome just feels insulting. What should I do?