Five Strategies for a Successful Promotion

Great news, you finally received your well-deserved and looong overdue promotion. Champagne toast tonight (you earned it!), but what’s the plan starting tomorrow? 

Research shows that 45% of Millennials rate professional career growth as “very important” to them as opposed to 31% of GenXers and 18% of Baby Boomers. (Gallup State of the American Workplace Report 2017)

The opportunity to grow with a company is sought-after and a testament to your abilities and potential, so let’s make sure you begin your promotion on the right foot!

1. Meet with your boss. You need to understand your new role, responsibilities, and expectations thoroughly.

Ask about your staff and their roles, and what success looks like for you and your team. Get to know your boss’ management and communication style. You may even ask them, “If you were in my shoes at this juncture, how would you approach getting up to speed and on the path to success?” 

2. Connect with each of your staff members.

Get to know them, both personally and professionally. Building a connection, particularly in these WFH times, is crucial to being a good manager. Ask how they view their role, what contributions they are making, what success looks like to them, and whether anything is holding them back from even greater success? 

3. Reach out to your new peers.

Establish a good working relationship. Your peers can be your most valuable relationships. Ask them a version of the same question you asked your boss, what do they wish they had known when they were first starting in their role? They can provide insight into your boss, the department, maybe even your staff. 

4. Establish a relationship with your HR liaison.

Share your enthusiasm about the promotion and ask about resources available to you and their recommendations for digital courses that would be valuable for you. I always enjoyed a strong relationship with my HR contacts over the years.

5. Write your goals for the new role and confirm your boss’s alignment.

Now that you understand the expectations, know your team, have your peers’ support, and know the resources available to you — you are ready to write your goals and put your plan into action. Most companies have a formal goal-setting process, but if not…well, I’d encourage you to do it anyway. As Zig Ziglar said,

“Unless you have definite, precise, clearly set goals, you are not going to realize the maximum potential that lies within you.” 

Now, put your plan in action and become successful in your new role. Congrats, you’re going to be amazing!