YOU WILL NEED WILL AS WELL AS WANT

When the decision-makers consider who to promote, very often it comes down to not just skill, but ‘will’ as well. They ask themselves: ‘Does this person have a “will” for the role, i.e. how much does he really want it? Because if he really wants it, he will work harder to make a success of the role and I feel more comfortable appointing him above the other guy who may be more qualified but doesn’t seem as passionate or convincing.’

We all procrastinate or get a bit lazy when it comes to putting in maximum effort, unless we feel really motivated. As you will see from the diagnostic section coming up next, you may have to face some painful realisations about yourself and your environment and why you are not already promoted for three or more years. I map out all the possibilities so that you will have a greater awareness on the gap areas, and how you may need to change. It may start to feel like hard work, and you may not feel like putting in the effort to address the gaps. Or, worse still, perhaps you are already so disinclined to do the work that you start to flick through the pages of the diagnostic, without really taking the appropriate time to seriously think and explore reasons why you are not yet promoted. It’s no problem if you don’t want to do the work. Just don’t expect a promotion as well! That is a recipe for disappointment – all of your own creation.

Sorry for being so serious. Perhaps, for many of you, I am just exaggerating to make the point. In any case, I am prepping you for what is ahead so that I can help you, and we can move forward faster on getting you that promotion, and the next one and the next one. The more you learn about what you lack, the faster you can work on resolving your issues and the closer you will get to that promotion. Although it sounds counterintuitive, the more we can flush out your issues, and get them all on the table, the more confident you will become. There will be a sense of relief from having a greater understanding of yourself and your challenges, and then the real work can begin.

The competition for promotion from middle ranks to the top table is fierce, even if not overt – or should I say especially if it is not overt, because hidden politics and agendas are even harder to navigate. Getting promoted takes energy and focus. Naturally you want the promotion, but commitment to a promotion is about making a promise to yourself that not only do you want the promotion, but that you have the will for it.

• How much do you really want the promotion?
• Are you ready to grow and change?
• Are you willing to take risks?
• Can you move outside your comfort zone?
• Are you easily discouraged, or can you get excited by the prospect of what it takes?

PERHAPS YOU CAN’T AFFORD NOT TO GET PROMOTED

The trouble with corporate life is that deciding not to invest in getting promoted is problematic too. If you are not demonstrating sufficient ambition compared with your peers, you may be seen as just coasting, and you might eventually lose your job. As you become more senior, the harder it is to get the next promotion. There are fewer roles and it takes more effort, so it might even feel easier to wait it out to see if ‘they’ promote you. I can tell you now that being passive is a very risky strategy. If you are not demonstrating sufficient ambition compared with peers, you are more likely to get demoted or lose your job. You are also in danger of having a mid-life, mid-career crisis later on – regretting that you never made the effort when you had the opportunity.

I worked with a senior client to successfully secure him a C-level promotion. As a member of the executive leadership team, he could have easily used that platform to subsequently pitch for the Group CEO role. However, he was lazy and also probably afraid of the demands that the top role would bring, so despite his potential he decided he didn’t want to go any further forward. Guess what happened next? A new Group CEO was appointed; my guy lost his seat at the top table, and was demoted back into the rank and file of ordinary director. So think carefully about what you want, and if you’re not fully in, don’t be surprised if others push you back down the ranks again. I have given you a very senior example, but the same holds true at every level in the organisation. If you are not seen to be ambitious at whatever level you are, then don’t be surprised if you lose your seat at the management table.

In another case, I had a very senior client who was a member of the Top 200 Leaders in a global corporation, and therefore eligible for consideration for a Top 25 job. I had to remind him that being eligible promises nothing. It is just a starting point for possibilities. My client wanted a promotion but didn’t realise he had to put in the work for it. Why don’t members of the Top 200 realise that the majority – possibly 175 or more – won’t necessarily ever get another promotion – ever? Very often the top team of 25 monopolise the leadership team for years by rotating around the top jobs. So there is very little movement at the top, combined with constant pressure from the ranks below to join the Top 200 each year. All this means is that you reach the Top 200 and unless you DO SOMETHING WITH THAT OPPORTUNITY, you simply come off the list again within a few years. It is just the maths, but people delude themselves into thinking that because they were told they could be a Top 25 leader, this will automatically lead to exciting Top 25 leadership appointment promotions. This also holds true in the junior ranks for those of you who are part of Top Talent programmes. On being selected into Top Talent programmes in your twenties, it is all very exciting. The organisation is full of ‘promises’ about how this means that you have potential to make CEO ‘one day’ and how you are on the path towards that big bright future – but in reality these high-potential development programmes often run their course within a few years, or are disbanded when cost reductions are necessary, and you may find yourself on your own again trying to navigate your own way to the top.

I want to open your eyes so that you realise that you are the one who needs to take charge of your career, and you are the one who needs to have inner drive and the self-motivation necessary to overcome obstacles to get the promotions you want. You are the one who needs to put in the work, and when you do, anything is possible. You may even become the Group CEO, if that is what you want.

So, with all that serious lecturing behind us now, if you are still up for a positive learning experience, then I have the answers for you, so read on! Don’t get overwhelmed. See it all as a positive learning opportunity and a wonderful investment in your work self.

DIAGNOSE THE REASONS

Consider all possible factors within your promotional environment. Once you have diagnosed the underlying issues, you will be better placed to resolve them and fast track your path to promotion.

Table 1.7 How not to get promoted

HOW NOT TO GET PROMOTED: TOP 10 MISTAKES			TICK IF TRUE
1.	I am not confident I can do the role at the next level up
2.	I have no strategic vision
3.	I am unwilling to relocate
4.	I expect my work to speak for itself
5.	I annoy my boss
	•	No respect for deadlines
	•	Consistently over-promise and under-deliver
	•	I complain, gossip or have a bad attitude
	•	I publicly embarrass or am disloyal to my boss, and company who pay my wage
	•	I asked my boss for promotion when he was in a bad mood
	•	I asked for promotion just because someone else got promoted
6.	I get defensive when I hear constructive feedback
7.	From time to time, I threaten to leave
8.	I am not adding any value above and beyond my current role requirements
9.	I have not expanded my skills or breadth of experience for 12 months or more
10.	I am not popular among my peers and others
	•	I am difficult to deal with interpersonally
	•	I am overly political and not trusted by all
	•	I have questionable ethics/past conflicts and scandals

If you are not confident you can do the job at next level up

I said in the diagnostic that you may be the one getting in the way of your own promotion. In my experience, at the heart of most issues with managers and leaders, when it comes to promotion, is confidence. We are all insecure at times, but perhaps no one more so than the over-achieving corporate manager or executive. ‘Am I really good enough?’ he keeps asking himself. This is why my promotion formula specifically addresses the importance of having the confidence in your ability to do the next role. Getting the promotion may be all down to your core confidence and how you project that confidence to the decision-makers.

If you have no strategic vision

Have you ever heard the words ‘You are not strategic enough’? Sometimes when a client hires me, he has heard these words from his boss as to the reason why he has not yet been promoted. Often, my client doesn’t understand what this means, and how to address it. When someone says you are not strategic enough, what they mean is that you only see the detail of what is immediately ahead of you, and you are not thinking about more long-term horizons, a bigger perspective and more creative solutions. To train yourself to think more strategically, imagine that you are the CEO of the company – and think about what kinds of opportunities and concerns are facing the top leadership team. Rise above the detail of your immediate role and start to think and talk about what needs to be done by the company within three to five years. Then within that context take a more strategic approach to what you want to achieve in your role and have those types of discussions with your boss. Pepper the conversation with phrases like ‘our CEO’s agenda’, ‘over the longer-term horizon’, ‘what is our three-year vision’, ‘let’s step back and see the bigger picture’, and – of course! – ‘how can we take a more strategic approach to resolving this problem’.

If you are unwilling to relocate

A tough choice can be the ‘willingness to relocate’. Obviously this is a challenge if you have put down roots, such as children going to school already. I would urge you to do international rotations early on in your career – in your twenties and early thirties. However, if you want to go further in your career, you need to be open to relocating the family at any time. Getting to the top of a global corporation will likely mean relocation roles from time to time as your family grows up. There is nothing necessarily wrong with uprooting your family. As well as financial rewards, the many positives may include the confidence and experience your children will likely gain from international schooling and absorbing other cultures. It all comes down to your mindset and how you frame it, and if you are willing to view the rotation as an amazing experience opportunity for all the family.

If you expect your work to speak for itself

Commonly considered a female mistake, this is when a person thinks that all they have to do is work hard and their hard work will be recognised. Not true. Your work will not speak for itself. You need to speak up about your work. Take opportunities to present your work at team meetings, or cross-company briefings. If there are no opportunities, then create them by presenting the reasons to the agenda holder as to why it would benefit all parties to get an update on what you do.

If you annoy your boss

The best way not to get a promotion is to consistently annoy your boss – through your bad behaviour, bad attitude or bad practices. Sometimes it is not about being ‘bad’ but instead is a misalignment between you and your boss about what is important. Something as simple as poor time-keeping and being consistently 20 minutes late starting work could be upsetting your boss. It could be leading to negative associations such as you don’t care about your job; you are not making an effort. Try to work out what your boss values, and mirror those behaviours where it makes sense. Don’t foolishly hamper your chances, by gossiping or being disloyal or irritating your boss in any way. There is no value to be gained by annoying your boss.

If you get defensive when you hear constructive feedback

When someone gives you feedback, treat it like a gift. You can either accept it or reject it, but first try to appreciate it. Always thank the person and ask for time to think about it, whether you initially agree or disagree with what was offered. Then do take the time to think about the feedback. Is there any merit in what was said? Perhaps this person has done you the greatest service by pointing out a reality, a blind spot or even a perception. Now you have more information on how others view you – rightly or wrongly. If there is a perception of you out there that isn’t accurate, then don’t play the victim. It’s up to you to correct the perception and sort yourself out in relation to any constructive feedback.

If, from time to time, you threaten to leave

When some high-performing executives get very stressed, they routinely threaten to leave. I had a client who handed in his resignation every couple of months, usually when organisation politics overwhelmed him. His boss knew how to handle him – and how to calm him down again – but these kinds of tantrums are quite childish and everyone knows it. If you act like you always have one foot out the door, then why would the organisation ever feel secure about investing in you long term? Far from being an empowering strategy, which is probably your intent, there will come a time when they decide that these are empty threats – which makes you look weak – or that you cannot be counted on to stay – which builds distrust. You are probably looking for validation of your worth to the business, but instead you run the risk of being labelled as ‘immature’, a tag that will be hard to shed from organisational memory in the future.

If you are not adding any value beyond your current role description

If you want to stay in your role, continue to stay in your role. If you want a promotion, expand your role to include extra responsibilities. Ask your boss what else you can help with. Bring new ideas to the table. Continue to prove your worth in your role and push the boundaries to show you are capable of more. Think about what you can do to add value above and beyond what would ordinarily be expected from someone in your role.

If you have not expanded your skills or experience in the past 12 months or more

If you are not learning, you are stagnating, or worse you are declining while all your peer competitors continue to skill up for success. If you want a promotion, you can’t be complacent about it. Other people want that promotion too. So keep learning and growing, and be fit for purpose when the next promotion round comes up. Sign up for appropriate education and leadership development courses. If your company is unwilling to invest in you, then invest in yourself using your own resources. The return on investment will be worth it in the longer term.

If you are not a popular choice

Popularity goes a long way. So does dislikeability. I always say that, in the end, organisations are highly interpersonal places; the person who is chosen for promotion has to be someone who can influence. You can try to influence with fear, but that won’t suit every context and eventually your colleagues or those who fear you will find a way to pull you down. Being popular does not mean you have to be the archetype of a charming charismatic extrovert leader. ‘Popular’ in this context just means you need to be someone that others trust, and would be happy to work for.

COMMIT TO A NEW BEGINNING

The ‘unpromoted for three or more years’ are usually – understandably – a particularly defensive bunch. In most organisations the manager population are tasked with all the heavy lifting and meeting the critical deadlines. Promotional prospects are dangled in front of them as incentive, but years can go by without any promotion materialising. The ‘squeezed middle’ are under immense pressure from their bosses, who are good at delegating. They are usually not properly resourced with sufficient talent or numbers on their teams and so often have to personally step in to fill the resource gaps. You may also feel lingering resentment about former peers jumping ahead, or angry that you have not yet been plucked out for promotion, or that it is unfair that you need to convince others of your obvious worth. If this is you, I get it. But you have to change your attitude if you want to get beyond the middle, and get that promotion.

The main problem I come across is with managers who feel entitled to a promotion based on their own imagined criteria – which may have little or nothing to do with company reasons for awarding more senior promotions. I understand their confusion. Becoming a manager was about doing well in their role, and getting promoted to manager was a reward for all the hard work. However, after the standard promotion track to manager, the rules change but are rarely understood or communicated as explicitly as set out in Table 1.8:

My advice is to leave your negative baggage behind now, and commit to a fresh new start. Feeling aggrieved, resentful and angry is not going to help your case. Decision-makers want to promote buoyant, optimistic people, with leadership potential, who will come to the role with an enthusiasm and positivity for the task and challenges ahead.

I had a senior manager client who constantly nagged and complained about why he wasn’t yet promoted. It was off-putting to his superiors because it sounded as if he had a grievance versus a true drive and energy to get to the next level for the benefit of all concerned. Don’t be a whinge! It’s not a winning strategy for promotion.

Start afresh, with positivity, and convert any feelings of unfairness into a constructive determination to do the work to get that promotion. You don’t need to wait for the promotion to happen to have a new beginning. Commit to a new beginning now. With a greater sense of what you want from your work life, and having worked out your career game plan, then today is an opportunity for a fresh start and a new sense of purpose at work.