Tips for earning a promotion
Ken Pelczarski | TLT Career Coach September 2014
Follow these 14 steps if you want to advance your career and enhance your reputation.
HAVE YOU EVER BEEN passed over for a promotion you felt was deserved? Perhaps you can do more to increase your promotability in the eyes of your employer.
You may not desire to be in management, have direct reports or climb the corporate ladder. However, it is still likely you will want to advance your career with new responsibilities and challenges along the way. Here are 14 tips that could help you obtain new job responsibilities or an official promotion.
1. Define your career goals. The better you know what you want to accomplish in your career in the short, medium and long terms, the more likely you are to achieve your goals. Evaluate your goals in areas such as (a.) direct reports, (b.) customer contact, (c.) project management, (d.) travel and (e.) relocation. Always have an action plan for making continual progress toward your goals at your current job. Review your goals at least annually and make necessary adjustments in your master plan.
2. Maintain an updated resume and list of accomplishments. Resumes are not just for interviewing with potential new employers. Many companies formally interview internal candidates for open positions and expect to see documentation of skill set, experience, achievements and overall career progress—even from current employees. Update your accomplishment list regularly to present for both internal and external job opportunities.
3. Make your aspirations known. Unless you make your career goals known to top managers, they may think you are comfortable and satisfied in your current role. On one hand, emphasize you enjoy your job and find it challenging. On the other hand, stress that when a specific type of position comes available within the company, you would be motivated to consider a new challenge. Your employers will realize they need to actively consider and inform you regarding new challenges in order to keep you happy.
4. Apply to internal job postings. Many companies, especially larger ones, have a formal internal job posting policy. Be sure to keep an eye on these postings and respond quickly to positions related to your career goals. Although an internal job candidate typically has an edge over external candidates, be ready to go through an in-depth interview against both internal and external competition.
5. Do an outstanding job. This is the most obvious path toward gaining a promotion. Establish a reputation for being successful in whatever you endeavor. Put forth 100 percent effort, even if you don’t like your current role or project. Your employer will be more apt to give you more responsibility if you have a history of meeting company goals.
6. Go the extra mile. Go beyond expectations by spending extra hours on a project, showing exceptional resourcefulness or mentoring co-workers. Employers promote individuals who do what it takes to get the job done and who work effectively with others.
7. Focus on company goals. You may possess a tremendous skill set, but you still may not be promoted if you focus on your own agenda. Prove yourself as a team player who interacts and collaborates well with others in pursuit of company goals.
8. Obtain feedback on your job performance. Performance reviews are an excellent time to obtain feedback from your employer about your job performance and your career path with the organization. Learn if there are areas needed for self-improvement before being given additional responsibilities. Share your career goals and thoughts on your own job performance and set an action plan and timeline for possible promotion. If your company does not conduct regular performance reviews, request to meet with your boss every 3-6 months.
9. Continue learning. This is a place to give yourself an edge for promotion versus many co-workers. Employers promote individuals who, through self-improvement, can better handle additional responsibilities and adapt to new systems and technologies. Finishing an undergraduate degree, earning an advanced degree, obtaining a certification (such as STLE’s CLS, OMA and CMFS designations), attending STLE Webinars and other seminars should all enhance your value and chances for promotion.
10. Participate in technical societies. By participating in societies such as STLE, you are showing a commitment to your profession. When you attend technical meetings and/or become a volunteer, you broaden your skill set through new learning which should benefit your employer. You also raise your personal status as a thought leader in the industry, especially through giving presentations.
11. Build positive relationships. Avoid negative politics such as being cutthroat, backstabbing, lying or manipulating. It might work once or twice but will eventually trigger a negative reputation for you in the industry. Build positive relationships with management and co-workers. Be professional in up-selling yourself (avoid putting others down) by consistently and effectively communicating with management about your abilities and career goals.
12. Promote your potential value in a new role. It can easily happen that you are doing an outstanding job but get overlooked for promotion. This may occur when an employer sees you as too valuable in your current role to risk moving you into a new role. You need to maintain open communication and convince management that, although you are valuable in your current job, you would be even more valuable in a different role. Stress your capabilities and your motivation to achieve at a high level in the new role you desire.
13. Demonstrate a good work ethic and positive attitude. The higher you move up in a company, the more important it is to have a solid work ethic and a positive attitude. Talent is not enough to earn a promotion with most companies. Employers look to promote individuals that others will look up to. As you move up, you will be influencing productivity, morale and company culture.
14. Stay rested, healthy and fit. Being well rested on a daily basis will improve your productivity and increase your chances of being promoted. You may have the experience and motivation to do well in a higher level role, but you also need to be physically capable of handling additional stress and workload.
PROMOTION ALTERNATIVES
While not a promotion, these activities will boost your career and could lead to career advancement and greater job fulfillment.
1. Request additional responsibilities within your current role. If there is no position to be promoted to in the near future, taking on new challenges within your current role can increase your chances of a future promotion by adding to your visibility and by lengthening your list of accomplishments. Request new tasks such as managing more complex projects or supporting bigger customers.
2. Request a lateral move within your department or business group. Showing an interest in broadening your skill set is usually looked at favorably by an employer and should increase your qualifications to be promoted later into a group leadership, mid-management or upper management role. Examples include moving from direct sales into marketing or from laboratory formulation into field technical support.
3. Request a transfer to a different business group. You can broaden your experience by transferring to a business segment with different products and/or markets. Increase your odds of being promoted by moving to a more progressive and/ or profitable division that will add to your visibility.
4. Change employers. If you are not optimistic about achieving your career goals with your current employer, a final option is to change employers. Depending upon your goals, make sure there is a significant reason to join a new company such as (a.) a higher level position, (b.) more responsibility, (c.) bigger challenge, (d.) faster growth potential, (e.) more enjoyable work or (f.) a more stable or progressive company.
I wish you personal growth and success on each step of your career ladder!
Ken Pelczarski is owner and founder of Pelichem Associates, a Chicago-based search firm established in 1985 and specializing in the lubricants industry. You can reach Ken at (630) 960-1940 or at pelichem@aol.com.