FIRE UP YOUR INNER RESOLVE

Your inner resolve is about simply deciding you are good enough for promotion and you are going to go for it. Look around you – no rows and rows of rocket scientists surrounding your cubicle, I am guessing. I am sure you are just as good, if not even better than your peers. At the very least, you have potential and are willing to learn. Look at the folks above you. Yes, some are impressive for sure, but not all. The more exposure you have to senior people the more you see their flaws. We often, wrongly, put senior leaders on a pedestal, bestowing virtues upon them that are not at all deserved. Take them off the pedestal and see more clearly what they are good at, and what they are not good at. Realise that they have strengths and weaknesses just like you. Resolve to give this promotion your best shot, that you compare well with others and perhaps even better than most. Never forget: ‘If that guy can do it, so can I.’

Once you have fixed your inner resolve, then your intention is more stable and focused. By simply deciding that you definitely want the promotion, you increase the likelihood that you are going to get it. By deciding you want it, you are more likely to take the necessary steps to get it. This energy also transmits consciously (through your actions) and unconsciously (through your energy) to others. The decision-makers will see it and feel it from you, and will be more likely to be impressed by your keenness to get the role.

By taking charge, you will stop being passive and also avoid acting like a victim. Waiting for the call-up that never happens is very disappointing and can lead to bitterness and regret later on. Blaming others and acting like a victim is also detrimental to your well-being. You have more control over your promotion prospects than you realise.

JUST ASK

Have you ever actually asked for a promotion? Sometimes, you simply have to ask the right person in the right way, at the right time, and you can immediately fast track your chances for promotion. Don’t believe me? It has happened. I worked with a Managing Director who wanted a promotion to a Chief Strategy Officer role, but had never asked for it. I persuaded him to book half an hour with the Group CEO during lunchtime at the next company leadership development event, and present his vision for the future of the firm and his corresponding pitch for promotion. This was tactical timing, because I knew the event would be focused on building the morale of leaders, and therefore the CEO would be in the right mindset and open to encouraging ideas from up-and-coming leaders. My client went to the meeting, armed with a thoughtful presentation, and he made a strong impression. The meeting was a runaway success. It took a further six months for the role vacancy to come up, but when it did, the Group CEO knew exactly who he wanted in post and my client got the call-up. Without putting himself forward for the role, he would never have even been considered.

If you get an immediate negative response, then ask the decision-maker for advice on how to get the promotion. Get him to tell you what it would take to get promoted, and what advice he can offer you. You need to get him to emotionally commit to your journey. The more the decision-maker feels as if he is responsible for guiding you, the more likely he will feel under pressure to support your promotion.

IMPRESS YOUR BOSS

On the face of it, this should be self-evident. Please your boss and she will promote you. However, it is a bit tricky when the only promotion opportunity available would be to take your boss’s role. So, yes, please your boss, but work out when, if ever, she intends to leave her post, whether she would want you as her successor, or whether you would be better off to solicit her support on taking a promotion role elsewhere in the company. The problem is that you need to read between the lines. Does your boss say she wants you as successor, but she doesn’t intend to leave her role for at least another five years? Do you really want to hang around for that long, on such a promise? Does your boss say you are not good enough to do her role, when in reality she may feel threatened that you are more than capable of filling her shoes? How do you resolve the dilemma? Put simply, if pleasing your boss did not get you any closer to promotion within the past two to three years, and if there is no clear promotion in sight within the next six months, then it’s time to find a new boss!

CRAFT A NEW ROLE

In my experience, the easiest way to get a new promotion is to invent a new role. Have you tried this? Lots of companies don’t have a Chief Operating Officer (COO) role on the management team, and it is the kind of role that can be crafted to suit your own strengths. It is a fantastic ‘catch all’ opportunity to pitch to alleviate some of the pressures your boss is under. Think about what responsibilities you could put under the COO role that would make your boss’s life easier. A pitch that is a win for your boss is more likely to succeed.

I worked with a director who felt aggrieved, and disillusioned by lack of recognition, and had been previously passed over a year before for a ‘promised’ promotion. I advised him to propose a new role of COO on the management team, describe his vision for it, list the accountabilities that would fall under the role and – if appropriate – subtly play on his boss’s guilt for previously passing him over. It took one well-prepared conversation with his boss for this appointment to be made – much to the shock and surprise of his peers. Just by asking the right person in the right way, at the right time, my client secured a great position and platform for future success.

Another interesting angle on how to craft a role is to propose for ‘Chief of Staff’. It sounds good, doesn’t it, but what is it? No one really knows, and that is why it could be a great idea and opportunity for promotion. You know the pressures your boss is under, and what priority areas are difficult for him to cover. So propose that you become his Chief of Staff and offer to take his problem areas within the scope of your role, as well as people issues and new projects. Your boss may feel relieved, and might just buy it! At a minimum, he will appreciate your empathy, initiative and ambition. Don’t be inhibited by the idea of creating a brand new role. If your boss wants it to happen, he will figure it out with his boss and HR.

A more junior version of this could be to propose the new role of ‘Program Manager’, and bring in certain responsibilities under this new role, such as innovation or new projects.

UNLOCK YOUR NETWORK

By unlocking your internal and external network, you may discover that someone has a vacancy on their team. Make a list of who you know, in positions above you, both inside and outside your company. Pay particular attention to those you worked with and were friendly with in your company, and who have since moved onwards and upwards elsewhere. Go through the list and create a top ten based on criteria of how senior they are and how much they liked or rated you – even if you feel you only made a fleeting positive impression years ago. Now track them all down via online social platforms or whatever it takes, and ask if you could buy them lunch or a coffee and catch up. You might be pleasantly surprised to discover that most people are open to this kind of networking. For those who have no interest, then you know they wouldn’t have been helpful in finding you a promotion. For those who are happy to meet you, you can start off with mutual updates and then you can explain that you are keen to move on up in your career and do they have any advice, or do they know of any opportunities that might exist.

JOIN A NEW COMPANY

You could get a promotion by switching company. However, if you want a step-up promotion by switching companies, it often comes with a step-down on company brand. Think about when it is most useful for your career to trade down on company brand for a level-up promotion. If you do it too early, you might find it harder to navigate any route back into a better company brand other than by taking a lateral move or possibly a demotion.

Also it may be easier to get a promotion by joining a new company rather than by getting promoted internally, but if you haven’t really earned it what happens if you get found out within a year and then lose that job? Do you plan to company-hop your way through your career? When I look at a curriculum vitae (CV) I can spot the pattern of the person who has been promoted to senior levels through the strategy of joining big brand companies and then switching industries or companies every two or three years. To be honest, I am concerned about the substance of such people – why do they have to deploy this strategy? Are they actually pushed to go, after not meeting expectations? But, frankly, yes, it does work as a promotion strategy. Not all employers notice or share my concern about people with this kind of CV. Headhunters blind the prospective employers with talk of the great brands they have come from, and why the employer should hire them.

Joining a new company will get you out of your comfort zone, and often comes with an attractive sign-on bonus or better salary. However, there is a risk that it may not work out. Many people perform well in their existing company by virtue of the goodwill that they have built up over a number of years. Without this reservoir of goodwill in a new place, it may be difficult to be as successful. That said, if you feel that your current company is never going to fully recognise your efforts, then you probably have nothing to lose by taking your skills elsewhere.

GIVE YOURSELF A PROMOTION

Why wait for others to decide? You could decide – as a visualisation experiment! – that you are already promoted; i.e. decide that you are already promoted to the next level, and see whether this would help you change your attitude and work approach, and increase the likelihood that others can now envisage you at the next level of leadership.

It might sound a bit silly at first, even delusional – but actually, as long as you know that this is just an exercise, it can be an effective empowering strategy in terms of stepping up your performance and behaviour if you start to act as you would if you were operating at the next level up. Would you feel more confident? Would you make better decisions?

Look around you – how does your boss and the other people at the next level up behave? Suddenly, by promoting yourself, you might give yourself permission to have opinions on topics and ideas that previously you felt un-entitled to comment on, given your junior position. You could power forward on having the buzz and freedom from the promotion you want, just by liberating yourself to be that more senior person. In the ‘dress for success’ genre of books and advice, it is always recommended that if you want a promotion, you should dress as if you already have it. In today’s modern corporate environment, dress codes are no longer as clear-cut as that (nowadays the receptionists and personal assistants are often the best dressed!), but if the tip applies to your situation, then why not go for it? Smart-casual could become smarter-casual. In very traditional ‘suited up’ companies, like consulting or law firms or banking, a smart ‘next level up’ dresser will be noticed and it could even provide a halo effect in that people will unconsciously assume you are capable of operating at the next level up. You would be surprised what influences some people, and if you are sending out a change of image, different from/better than your peers, the senior people might notice you more.

OFFER TO TAKE AN OVERSEAS ASSIGNMENT

There are usually fantastic promotion opportunities in far-flung regions abroad – at smaller satellite offices or in high-growth emerging markets. At a large global conglomerate, there was a vacancy for a role in the Caribbean. The level was Finance Manager. However, at the time, it was difficult to find suitable candidates who would relocate to this particular part of the world for three years. A young ambitious person read these signs, and decided to put himself forward for the relocation on condition that it came with a promotion to Finance Director. At first, it was refused, but with the right level of insistence and a redefinition of what was expected from the role, he negotiated the promotion to Director level, and subsequently fast-tracked his way to a Director promotion that would otherwise have taken at least three more years to achieve in the United Kingdom. When you are young, and not tied to a particular location, then these are the kinds of risks and moves you should consider for getting ahead as fast as possible.

Experience overseas, and especially in emerging markets, is always going to be a plus in your career. It shows you have independence, courage, and an interest in the wider world. Later on in your career, it will stand out as a clever investment of your time, especially if you work in a global company. Once you have made Director, it becomes easier to get your next senior role, and so on. This guy I mentioned had a career game plan: make Director fast, get international experience under his belt, then work out how to switch from functional expertise to General Management. As it happens, the fastest way to General Manager was to take another ex-patriated role. Ex-pat life may not be for you, but – if you are open – it can offer you a pathway to faster promotions, and very good monetary rewards as well as an amazing life experience.

MAKE YOUR EXISTING ROLE MORE STRATEGIC

Perhaps you find yourself at the top of your function in a good title/position, but not really empowered and want to step up to a more strategic role and/or have a seat at the executive management table. In these cases, you can pitch a more strategic definition of your role – accompanied by a promotion. For example, I worked with a Group HR Director to craft a new role of Chief People Officer. I worked with a ‘stuck’ Marketing Director to craft a new role of Chief Marketing Officer. In both those cases, by outlining a more strategic job description and pitching for it demonstrated to their bosses that they had more to offer and both successfully secured a pay rise and new title, and felt more empowered in their role. It took three months in one case, and a year in the other, because naturally you need to demonstrate real change in their role, as well as making a pretty presentation. However, this approach works. It re-invigorated their career, and was the catalyst for a step change. It also works as a neat way to get your title sorted out, prior to moving outside to a new company. The new company is obliged to offer you the same title role as the one you left, so if you can get the promotion in your existing company before you leave for a new one, that can be a good plan because it may be harder initially to prove yourself in a new company when you don’t have a track record and don’t yet understand how the power and politics work there.