Do you want a promotion?

Are you next in line to get promoted? Do you think there is a line like at a bakery? Do you know how promotion decisions are made at your company?

In my years as an individual contributor and years leading teams, I’ve learned a few differentiators that lead to promotion decisions. This post’s goal is to:

1. Help you determine what you want
2. Dispel myths about advancement

Getting promoted is a significant milestone in your career. It's a recognition of your hard work, dedication, and accomplishments. It can also come with increased responsibilities, more opportunities, and a higher salary.

One huge truth that took me a while to learn. Two things need to happen for a promotion to be possible.

1. Proven display that an individual can perform in the new role
2. A business need

Most people know about #1 (and there will be more ideas in next week's post) – do your job well, showcase competencies necessary in the next role – but it wasn’t until I was a leader that I learned more about the business need part. This is the most important part. You can be the best to ever walk this earth and do what you do. That doesn’t always lead to a promotion. It may lead to raises (depending on economic conditions).

For a promotion to be approved there has to be a business case for creating a new role. A business case could be that someone might leave if they aren’t promoted, but this may not lead to mutual success for the individual or the company. Stronger business cases would be growing strategic accounts that would best be served by this individual directly helping those clients grow. Another may be an increase in workload where an individual is super efficient and can handle a higher volume of tasks that differentiates their work from others. This is an area where partnering with your leaders and having open conversations about the health of the business can lead to more growth opportunities for your knowledge and potentially your role advancement.

What Do You Want?

“The best things in life are free

But you can give them to the birds and bees

I need money (that's what I want)”

-Berry Gordy and Janie Bradford

Perhaps you sing that song to yourself while envisioning your paydays post-promotion. There are many motivating factors and everyone’s motivational mix can be different. Below is a list of the most common drivers.?

TASK: Think about what motivates you, then give a score to each of the below drivers from 1-5.

5 of the most common motivators (and associated pitfalls):

• Money: Money is a powerful motivator for many people. The desire to earn a competitive salary and provide for oneself and one's family can be a strong incentive to work hard.
• Pitfall: Chasing money can be a never-ending race. Someone will likely always make more than you. This can serve as a driver for you or a big cause of stress. Explore your relationship with money. What job does more money fill for you? Research shows happiness increases plateau after ~$80K/year.
• Recognition: People also want to be recognized for their hard work. Being praised by one's boss or colleagues can be a great motivator.
• Pitfall: This is one of my big motivators. From my experience, recognition can decrease the further up the pyramid you climb, particularly for people leadership. There’s a great passage in “Big Potential” by Shawn Achor encouraging serving as a mirror or spotlight to share recognition for others when they are helpful or do good work. A promotion can lead to more strategic and complex work, often that has more visibility with senior leaders. This can lead to more recognition, but also more pressure.
• Power: Some people are motivated by the desire for power. They want to be in a position where they can make decisions and influence others.
• Pitfall: Thankfully I haven’t experienced many people who vocalize a thirst for power (I think of Game of Thrones in the most extreme version of this driver). A reminder I’ve shared with many people: do not let your title limit your ability to influence. Just because ‘Manager’ isn’t in your title doesn’t mean you can’t help others.
• Purpose: People also want to feel like their work has a purpose. They want to know that they are making a difference in the world.
• Pitfall: Having a purpose is the foundation, but often buried under more material drivers. One of my previous company’s employee philosophies was built on Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. To ascend to thinking deeply about your purpose your basic needs have to be met. If you don’t have enough money for groceries and stable housing, you likely aren’t dwelling on your life’s calling.
• Growth: People also want to grow and develop their skills. They want to learn new things and challenge themselves.
• Pitfall: This is mostly a positive trait. I’ve experienced where I thought I knew all I could about a topic and wanted something different/more. This could take the shape of more complex projects or work that involves other teams or leaders. Help your manager by specifying what you’d like to be better at. Do: Be humble. Don’t: Be arrogant. How you frame your desire for growth can be the difference between building a partnership or souring a mentor.

Read more:

What Motivates You

What Motivates You in Life