3 Ways to Grow Your Career as a Latina
Our Hispanic community is a force to be reckoned with. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, Hispanics are projected to account for 78% of net new workers between 2020 and 2030. Those of us in the workforce now are paving the way for these newcomers in our community.
Whether you are a Latina new in your career or looking to climb the ladder, I'm excited to share career advice based on my experience and the career experience of diplomat and entrepreneur, Claudia Romo Edelman.
Let me tell you a bit about myself. My background is Mexican and Puerto Rican. I’m the first one in my family to graduate with a 4-year degree. My parents and grandparents felt it was important for me to earn that degree. While they worked hard to create an environment where I could study and learn and achieve that goal, no one in my family could help me navigate college. They just didn’t have insider knowledge about how I could set myself up for success.
After I moved into my career, I realized I was in a similar position—tons of love and belief in my potential—but not a lot of actual experience or advice on things like how to network, get mentors and sponsors, or negotiate my salary.
It's been this kind of practical career advice that's made the most difference. Advice on how to do things like network or navigate an interview process—what to say to start those conversations, and actionable steps to take. This advice could come from anyone, but when it came from another woman—and even better a Hispanic woman— then I not only felt equipped, but I felt seen and inspired.
That’s what drew me to Claudia Romo Edelman’s course, How to Succeed as a Latina in a Global Work Environment. She has great, specific tips on how to navigate and accelerate your career while understanding what it means to do that as a Latina. You can watch this course for free until October 15, 2022.
In this post, I’ll share three tips from the course that resonated with me. I’d encourage you to check out the full course to hear all that she has to offer.
1. Help managers and peers understand your context
According to a Harvard business review study, 76% of the Hispanic population don't feel comfortable being themselves in their workplace. Romo Edelman says that in this situation, we often leave our best selves at home and bring someone else to work that we don’t even know. To avoid this, she encourages us to have direct conversations with our managers about how to be an ally in situations we might feel uncomfortable.
This was eye-opening for me, the idea that instead of struggling to jam myself into an ill-fitting mold, I could provide insight into what works better for me, and in the end, my manager or coworkers will get a much better employee and a better bottom line.
This may be easier said than done. LinkedIn found that when asked about the biggest obstacles preventing Latino professionals from advancing in the workplace, 31% cite a lack of support from direct managers or senior leadership.
Claudia gives some examples of how to get this kind of support from your manager. For instance, maybe you're a little shy or hesitant to push back in a larger setting. In this case, Romo Edelman suggests letting your manager know that speaking up in this forum isn't the norm for you either culturally or personally. She also says we can provide a clear pathway for others to be allies. We can suggest to our manager, that when there is an opportunity, you (the manager) can do X or Y to shine a light on me.
I like that Romo Edelman leaves room for Latinas, or anyone, to be their authentic selves and still be strong, visible members of a team. "Look, this is me, but this is also my context." This helps your supervisor understand who you are and it helps you own your power and your story.
2. Negotiate your salary based on performance review cycles
All too often, we hear that women negotiate less than men when it comes to salary or promotions. Romo Edelman shares that Latinas make $0.43 on the dollar for doing the same job and we’re the lowest paid group of people in the US workforce. I had to hear that twice—there is no other group in America that is paid less than Latinas. A survey from LinkedIn shows that 60% of Latino professionals aged 18-34 feel they have been overlooked or intentionally passed by for career advancement opportunities, like promotions or pay raises, because of their race.
For me, these statistics are so disheartening and troubling given how hard Latinas work. What is clear, is that hard work alone won’t elevate our salaries and our careers, we will need to push for what we deserve.
Given these sobering facts, I particularly valued the direct advice Romo Edelman gives around timing your salary discussions to have the best potential for success. She encourages us to know the cycle around promotions and raises and to time our asks accordingly.
Bringing up a promotion during an off-cycle time, even if it’s well deserved, may be an impossible task for your manager. In some organizations, compensation increases are decided weeks or months before employee reviews happen. This means waiting to bring up a raise during your review may, in fact, be too late.
3. Elevate yourself (and your family!) not just by your income, but by your network
This was news to me. I was raised to believe that it was my job to do better, financially, than my parents. I figured I’d do that by getting a job, putting my head down, working hard, and increasing my income over time. “Just work hard”, is a refrain many Latinos hear, which can feel frustrating when we see our counterparts outpacing us in terms of promotions and salaries.
Romo Edelman shares that while the Latino community is well equipped for upward mobility, the easiest and fastest way to get there is through networking. She talks about how other groups leverage their networks to get everything from jobs to doctors' appointments, but that our community isn’t being as intentional about our networks.
She challenges us, as women, to dare to make “the ask” for advice, a new connection, or even a mentor.
When looking at the biggest obstacles preventing Latino professionals from advancing in the workplace, LinkedIn found that 34% of Latino professionals cited a lack of mentorship, sponsorship, or allyship in the workplace. If this is something you don’t currently have, it’s up to you to reach out and ask someone. If making the formal request for a mentor seems too much, start by just asking for a 30-minute conversation about a specific topic. If it goes well, you can ask for another chat later and it may evolve into mentorship. Even if the person doesn't end up being a mentor, the conversation will likely lead to adding another person to your valuable network.
She also encourages us to bring other people together as well, to continue to strengthen our networks. She states, “Connections don't diminish your capital, connections increase your capital, introduce people to each other, buy from each other, hire from each other, mentor each other intentionally.”
Romo Edelman starts her course with the message, “Latinos, own your power, own your voice”, and I think it’s a message so many of us can embrace and put to use. There are many ways we can advocate for ourselves, help shape our work environment and learn to lead and succeed within our careers.
For genuine inspiration and expert advice on navigating your career from a woman who understands the impact Hispanic women can have, watch Claudia Romo Edelman's full course for free until October 15, 2022, How to Succeed as a Latina in a Global Work Environment.
For more career advice on how to grow your career as a Latina, check out these other courses for free until October 15, 2022:
Topics: Conversations for change
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