Nobody gets promoted for doing their job well
For when: you want the next title, and you would like to know what actually moves it.
Tilen Višnjevec · Finance director, Copenhagen · Doing your job well gets you a good review. It doesn't get you promoted. That surprises people early in their careers, because school rewarded exactly that: do the work, get the grade.
I sit in the meeting where promotions are decided. Here's what moves people up faster, in the order I'd work on it.
1. Understand how the decision is made. It's a short conversation between busy people, most of whom have met you a few times. Your manager speaks for you, and the room asks three questions: are you already doing the next job, does anyone else vouch for you, and is there a risk? The meeting you are not in →
2. Ask how it works where you are. Every company is different. Ask your manager who decides, when, and what the next level looks like in practice. Five questions to ask your manager →
3. Start doing the next job now. Promotions confirm what you already do. Find a problem nobody owns and own it, start to finish. Promotions confirm what you already do →
4. Make the work visible. Not by bragging. By making sure the people who decide see the outcome, with your name on it. Good work that nobody sees is a hobby →
5. Keep the evidence. Ten minutes every Friday. In October you'll be glad you did. Keep an evidence file →
6. Give your manager a case to make. They'll argue for you in a room you're not in. Hand them the argument. Your manager is your advocate →
7. Find a sponsor. A mentor gives advice. A sponsor says your name when it counts. Mentors give advice. Sponsors give promotions. →
What quietly holds people back
Waiting. Waiting to be noticed, waiting for the title before taking on the responsibility, waiting for review season to bring it up. The people who move fastest treat their promotion as a project with a deadline, not a reward that arrives.
The fastest promotion I have seen went to someone who wasn't the most technical person on the team. They started doing the next job's work early, and made sure their manager could see it.
If it still doesn't happen
Sometimes you do everything right and the answer is still no. Read When the answer is “not yet”. And sometimes the answer will always be no where you are. Read When staying stops working.
What to do this week
Book 30 minutes with your manager and ask the five questions.
Pick one problem nobody owns and offer to own it.
Start your evidence file today, with three entries from last month.
Promotions go to people who are already doing the job. The fastest way up is to start.