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Thierry Shang, Director, TIBCO, July 2001
How to position Yourself for a Promotion
In the past months, I have worked with two clients (separately), one
Indian, one Chinese, who originally came for accent reduction and
general communications training; however, toward the end of our sessions,
both of them said that they were unsure how to approach their bosses
for a)
promotions and b) to let them know that they merited not only a higher
position, but also more recognition.
And, both of them were initially very hesitant to “make waves” and
were worried about not saying the right thing. We brainstormed
for a while and decided to isolate what they really were after and how
to get it.
We made an outline:
A What are the real reasons to talk to the supervisor?
B What points of discussion will you bring up?
a) Your own contributions to the project/company
b) Prerequisites for the next level
c) Involvement of HR
d) Who will follow up
C What is the win/win for you and the company?
D What is the desired outcome
of the discussion?
E What are you afraid will happen as a result of the
meeting?
F What will
you do if - after the discussion - nothing happens or only partly? Questions
to ask:
a) Is there an exit strategy in place?
b) Do you still want to stay and work there? and why?
c) Do you want to stay because of challenges of the job?
d) Is there further growth in the job?
e) Do you have a special relationship with your colleagues?
G What kind of language will you use to talk
to your supervisor?
Phrases such as:
"It seems to me, I think, I would like to point out that, what do you think?" are
good to use.
The
important thing is you present yourself in the best light and not
bring any comparisons to colleagues into the discussion ( "I am doing
most of the work",
"he never really does anything concrete", "he is always
late"…).
Outcomes
What came out of most of our discussions and outline was that both were
happy with the companies they were in, they knew it could be better,
but they were
held back in taking the initiative to talk to their supervisor by their
own cultural traditions.
Insights
In the US, it is fine and also expected that you speak for yourself
and make a case of why you should be moved higher. It is not an insult
to
a boss,
nor a confrontation, nor is anyone losing face; it is a business procedure
and
does not (should not) reach into a personal domain – that’s
why it is important to limit the discussion to facts and present your
work
and
your experience
in the
best (win/win) way.
And...
The Indian client did in fact talk to HR and to his supervisor; he was
told he was indeed in line for a promotion, unfortunately he was not
given
an exact date when
that would happen.
The Chinese client worked through the outline with me and still has
to present his case. He is still wondering if it will be worth his energy
to speak up as we had talked about initially; he is not sure of the
outcome and what he will
do if he doesn’t get promoted.
Alternatives
In the meantime, I advised they start getting onto the speaking circuit
here in the Silicon Valley; that way they can promote their expertise,
get noticed
and
if nothing happens in their company, they will have made good contacts
for new interviews and maybe a new job.
