Dear Dark Horse,
What’s the best way to proceed with internal mobility! Do I network? Do I tell my manager first? Will they block my ability to move!-N.S.
Dear N.S.,
Early in my career I had an opportunity to work for a very experienced COO and I recall asking him a similar question. His answer has turned out to be some of the best career advice I’ve ever received. He said, “If you want career advancement, you need to stop waiting around for someone to notice you. If you want advanced responsibility, you need to TAKE IT.” I’m paraphrasing, of course. That was a long time ago and I don’t recall his exact words, but I can tell you that he wasn’t kidding about the “TAKE IT” part.
Over the years I’ve gradually learned how to do this for myself and I assure you that it works. It can be difficult to ask for what you want while maintaining the perception of being assertive rather than abrasive. I’ve found this to be particularly true as a woman working in the tech industry. [Insert eye roll here.] So, you may find that there is a slight learning curve while you find your own personal brand of assertiveness. Regardless, stick with it. The results will follow in time.
Here are some guidelines for embracing the “TAKE IT” philosophy.
The next time you’re going about your day and you notice something that ought to be getting done but isn’t, write it down. This could be one of your manager’s responsibilities that they aren’t able to keep up with, or it could be something entirely new. Maybe no one is keeping an inventory of your company-owned devices or security certificates. Maybe your company doesn’t have a presence on social media but they could benefit from engaging on certain mediums. Maybe your company doesn’t have emergency contact information for your employees, or there’s no formalized review process. Maybe you’ve been talking about starting up an internship program, or a mentorship program, and it hasn’t gotten off the ground. Maybe there’s a specific conference that you think your team ought to attend for business development purposes. Write it all down.
Pick an item off of your list. Start with a project that you know you’re well-suited to tackle. Write up a suscinct plan for approaching this additional responsibility. Bullet points are ideal. You don’t want your leadership to have to think too hard about their decision to grant you additional responsibility. Spoon feed them a “yes.”
What do you want to do?
What are the benefits?
How are you going to do it?
What resources will you need?
What is it going to cost?
Write your manager an email or approach them in-person. Present them with your written plan. Ask them, “Can I take this project off of your hands?”
If they say “yes” then get to work and make sure you do a good job. Rinse and repeat. If your leadership refuses to let you take on a project, don’t take it personally. Try again with a different idea.
Over time you will find that you’ve taken on so much additional responsibility, you easily qualify to take on a more senior role.
If your company has competent leadership, these people should work with you to adjust your position and compensation accordingly as your responsibilities become more advanced. Of course, it doesn’t always work that way.
If your increased responsibilities aren’t being recognized after a year or more, make a list of all of the new responsibilities you’ve tackled over that time and have a conversation with your manager. Be honest. Tell them you’re interested in advancement opportunities and highlight all of the great work you’ve done. See where that conversation leads. Be patient, give your leadership an opportunity to work with you, but don’t allow them to take advantage of your willingness to go above and beyond.
If you’re still not getting anywhere after that conversation with your manager, you may have to abandon the idea of internal advancement and look elsewhere. Companies are run by people, and people are inherently flawed. All people have biases. Some have selfish motives. Sometimes company politics play out in a way that works to your disadvantage. It’s not right, but that guy who does nothing but talk football all day with the boss could get promoted before you do and there’s not a damn thing you can do about it. Maybe the corporate culture devalues your skill set and they don’t want to pay you what you’re worth. Maybe you’re doing such a great job in your current role that leadership is reluctant to promote you because they don’t think they can find an effective backfill. There are all kinds of reasons why good people get passed over. If you find yourself in this situation, the bad news is that you’re going to have to get out of Dodge.
The good news is that your additional responsibilities make you objectively better qualified for a more senior position than the one you have now. So, get out there and take it!
Good question. Keep going, friends. You’ve got this.