Last week we explored the idea that your best “next career move” may be within your existing company, and identified the reasons why you have a promotion advantage over others outside the organization. You have access to the people in the organization who can help you determine what your company needs to increase its level of success. By identifying these needs, you can put yourself in a position to help make priority contributions to your organization. Finally, it is a recognized fact that company management will promote from within when they believe the move will upgrade their operations.
To reinforce the point, someone who knows the organization has more potential value to the firm than a new employee who must be “broken in”, provided the staff member knows how to demonstrate value. It is also a fact that good companies are willing to pay attractive salaries to those who can make productive contributions to the company.
MEND FENCES: Don’t begin your campaign if you are behind with your work or if you are experiencing conflict in your working relationships with people. Catch up with your responsibilities and begin to plan each workday so that every task you must perform is completed reliably and on time. Commit yourself to good human practices with your supervisors, co-workers and staff members. If you have a strained relationship with someone — especially if that person would be a key player in your strategy — be certain to work through any difficulties that exist.
COLLECT INFORMATION: Draw an organizational chart for your department and company, showing your position in relation to the entire operation. Detail your responsibilities and those of others on the chart. Find out what you don’t know by talking to others in the company. Learn which individuals have particular strengths, who makes the decisions, what is the company’s total scope of operations, which areas are flourishing, which need help and why. From this information you can grasp the “big picture” and proceed to determine a specific path to obtain your goal.
CHART A COURSE: Decide which position in the company can best use your skills and expertise to solve problems or improve operations. Don’t limit yourself to existing positions; create one if you have to, as long as you can justify its addition to perform the required functions of the new job.
WRITE A PROPOSAL: Prepare a written presentation that offers your employer something new or improved; a profitable product division, a new market for an existing product, a tighter system of financial management and, related specific data that documents your ability to provide the proposed required service. The proposal should also clearly define your job goal and your proposed contribution to the business.
MAKE A PRESENTATION: When the proposal is neatly type written, hand deliver a copy of it to each person who has a decision-making role in achieving your goal. Briefly explain to each that you would like them to read your proposal and then set up a meeting to discuss your ideas. At the meeting, review the proposal and ask for comments. Be prepared to defend your ideas with the facts you collected to prepare the proposal.
Once you have made the presentation, the initiative to make things happen must remain with you. All too often, people think that once they have made a presentation, then progress will naturally follow. Good sales people always retain control over the selling process, they prepare thoroughly, they deliver proposals that are specific and relevant to the needs of the buyer. And, most important of all, they follow things through to conclusion. Results are never immediate, your employer may ask for more time to consider the proposal or to discuss it with others and you must grant this. Still retain some control here by advising that you would still want to meet again on a specified date and continue to follow up until a decision has been made.
Success comes through perseverance as well as excellent preparation. Good Luck!
(Based in Dubai, David Thatcher, ([email protected]) is managing director of career management and corporate outplacement specialists BH Careers International in the Middle East.)