How to gain promotion
The art of securing a step up the career ladder.
Applying for an internal promotion can be a nerve-wracking experience. Not only do you have to undergo the intensive selection process with colleagues or external candidates, but as an existing employee, your employers already have experience of your strengths and weaknesses. This does not need to be perceived as a negative position to be in. Indeed you may have the edge over external candidates because you work within the organisation, as you should better understand its internal structures and values, and the requirements of the new role.
So how do you prepare for promotion and ensure that you are chosen for the job?
Make sure that you are ready for promotion as, if you are successful, your new role will undoubtedly bring with it new responsibilities and a greater workload. If you feel confident that you can do the job well and you have appropriate experience then you are already halfway there. The second step is to ensure that you have prepared thoroughly before you attend your promotion interview. Although it is an internal interview you must treat it as any other job interview because your assessors will need to compare your experience, skill set and attitude with other candidates. So while you may believe you are best for the job, do not assume that your employers will, just because you already work with them.
Try to find out as much as you can about the job including the extent of duties and relationships, the history, expectations and the reasons why this role has become vacant. Did the previous jobholder leave the company or were they promoted? Is it a newly created role and if so why has it been created? This is where your knowledge of the organisation will be beneficial, as you can talk to others in the relevant department to find out everything you possibly can about the job.
It is also the time to patch up any weak areas in your knowledge about the company and its structure and services. Depending on your length of service you may need to ask colleagues about unfamiliar areas of the business or company history so that you maximise the competitive edge you have over other candidates and feel confident going into your interview.
You should also try to anticipate the sorts of questions you are likely to be asked by your interviewers and prepare your answers carefully. Self-assessment will help you to think about why you should be chosen above everybody else. What can you do better than someone else? Why do you think you are ready for promotion and, if you are moving into a management role, what is your management style? These questions need some thought but you need to give evidence of experience and skills that illustrate how you are qualified for your next role. Perhaps you have managed projects in the past or led a team to achieve a common goal. It is essential that you provide information about the impact you have had on the business, and your commitment to achieving longer-term aims, since you will need to demonstrate how your career has developed within the organisation.
When attending your promotion interview, the rules are the same as an external interview. Arrive in good time, take time to answer the questions and give concise answers. Try to keep relaxed and think positively, end on an optimistic note and deal with the closing moments well. It can be difficult to remember all of these points in an internal interview, especially if you know your interviewer, but try not to be too familiar or tense. Remember, your employers would not have invited you for an interview if they did not consider you suitable and they will understand that you may feel anxious about the experience.
If you are selected for promotion you will have new challenges and possibly a different team to work with so make sure you ask relevant questions about the position. What would your new responsibilities be and what are the likely challenges? How will you be supported and what development opportunities exist? This is your chance to find out as much as you can from your interviewers about their expectations of the role. It is far better to discover the facts of the job before you are appointed and to know exactly what will be required of you.
Finally, if you are not selected for promotion, ask for feedback. Perhaps your interview technique let you down or maybe your employers feel there are some skills gaps. Although disappointing, it is well worth having this information as you can then start addressing these areas, and hopefully apply for promotion at a later date. Once you can combine appropriate experience with highly developed skills, and present them well in an interview, you are sure to start making your way up the career ladder and into an exciting, new role.
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From the IET