UK
It doesn’t feel very good to find out you didn’t get promoted, whatever the seniority level. It’s natural to wonder, “Is this a sign? Am I remedial? Do I have what it takes? Is it me or is it them?”
If this happens to you at an early stage, such as going from Associate to VP, then the most important thing from a career management standpoint (aside from regaining your equilibrium) is to find out what the true message is and determine if you are in the right place for your brilliant career. It is a time when you are entitled to some honest feedback, so treat it as a well-timed ‘wake-up call’ and make the most of this opportunity to make an honest assessment and get accurate feedback. The good news is that it is easier to make mid-course corrections at the earlier stages of your career than leaving it until later on.
The earlier on in your career that you get this ‘wake up call,’ the more likely that it’s an indicator that the current situation is not the best fit for you. Promotion hurdles get progressively higher as one becomes more senior, so not making VP in the regular promotion timescale should give you more pause than not making MD the first time around.
However, none of this is written in stone, and you have to figure out what it means in your specific situation.
Before you jump to conclusions, here are some action steps to consider:
· Assess for yourself:
o Who else did/did not get promoted? How do you stack up as a candidate on a relative basis? Note that even if you can understand why you didn’t make the list, it is still important to express your disappointment, and to let them know that you are looking to redouble your efforts but need them to guide you as to how you need to improve.
o Are there successful senior people who did not make VP right away?
o Are you in the right place (i.e., industry, business unit, function, company)? Are you in a place where your best capabilities can be put to use and valued? Are you in a role where you can shine? Is this what you love to do?
· Talk to your boss:
o What is the reason for the decision?
o What does it mean for your career: Are you viewed as future promotion material? Is it a
question of “when, not if”? Are you in a role from which you can be promoted?
o What do you need to do to position yourself for next year: Are there specific skills you need to develop or experiences you need to gain? Are there particular groups or people who need to become familiar with your abilities and made into supporters? Weaknesses to address?
· Get the advice of your mentors on the above
· Position yourself for next year if the conclusion is that this is the right place for you
· Stay positive: this is about your job, not your life or your value as a person
The key is to find the place where you can shine. If you are in it already and simply need to keep going, then go for it. Nonetheless, keep in mind that it is always good to create multiple options by maintaining your external network, even as you develop your internal support base.
If you conclude that your current role is not a good long-term fit for you, then it is time to begin the process of finding one for which you are better suited. Be patient as you explore avenues and resist the temptation to make sudden moves.
In the meantime, continue to do your best where you are and don’t burn any bridges, no matter how satisfying it may feel in the near-term. The world is highly connected these days and it is in your interest to make the reputation that precedes you a positive one.
another couple thoughts/questions you should ask yourself on why you didn’t get promoted…
- did you not sniff up the butt of your boss as much as your cubicle neighbor did ? … you know, the one that got promoted and who knows what the boss ate two weeks ago because his nose is so far up the his trone, but who frustratingly doesn’t have half of your technical skills
- do you really have enough esteem for the people above you to bow down and lower yourself at promotion time to do the rear-licking ceremonial ritual ?
Think about next year indeed as the author puts it, but rather don’t think so much about the promotion you might get, but rather about the company you have always wanted to create in order to, amongst other thing, not have to put up with all the promotion circus rituals anymore since you will be sitting on the highest echelon anyway
very true – Illusions, .
Illusions . . . .so true.
However, it is possible to get up the greasy one without all that brown nosing, look at me . . .. .I reached Director level, so obviously did a lot of good things and knew my stuff, and never once lowered myself to those techniques . . . . .. .now earning 65/week on the RnR . . . . . . . . .damn . . . . .
@apples – your case sounds interesting. Would you like to write about it (anonymously) for us? Get in touch at editor@efinancialcareers.com
Here is the piece of advice I got from someone who is now a global head of fixed income in a large investment bank. When we spoke a few years ago (or, to be more precise, when I was moaning to him), he was a senior trader and I was a research associate who did not make VP. My overall experience was slightly under the minimum requirement and my boss was not willing to make an exception.
This is what I was told. “Lynn , when in 10 years, you look back at your career, you will not even remember the year you made VP. It does not matter if you get promoted this year or next. You should really manage your career over 5 year cycle. Think where you want to be in 5 years and aim for it. Also set short term objectives for yourself but please be ready that some of them may temporarily slip. There are always elements in our career that are outside of our control. You should usually manage to put yourself back on track but this might take time. ”
I might not always agree with this advice (I am impatient) but I admit it comes from someone who managed to build a really good career.
Sadly banks tend to promote those in the gang. Those outside the gang, despite often giving better results, will be passed over for a while. The good news is that gangs don’t last. Given the low standard of management in many banks, they clearly can’t be getting their selection right – I’m sure we can all think of examples.
illusions…..well put and absolutely true! The question is what are your options if you will not s— up to the MD? Cynically, there are only 2 ways to succeed/survive in IB in the long term: (i) sniff butt well or (ii) compete and be better than most of your peers. I detest sniffers with a passion – they somehow manage to survive in this ultra competitive world. The natural reaction to being passed over for promotion is to leave. My advice: think twice because sniffers (and MDs who love being sniffed) are everywhere. That’s how they were made MD in the first place.
YeleCreb, gangs last and they last for a VERY long time. Big Bang happened so fast in the 80′s/90′s that all you needed to get into IB was a degree. That’s why you have so many people in senior positions today who should not have been there in the first place. We recently hired a director in M&A from a Tier 1 bulge bracket and fired him within 6 months because he was lazy and incompetent. Yet, he had been with his previous employer for 14 years!
The thing is that Sniffers are all over the place and their seniors love it than the way they could love they challenger-hardworkers.Well don’t tell me that you will get fired by your hirers.Sadly,the sniffer will fire you on basis of how the the lunch dish was delicious at the time of viewing your inner-outers work at you absence.Then,they will hire not necessarily the skilled one,but the one who can sniff up to avoid previous lessons learnt.
Realist: Hi – true, very true … haha
The best advice I ever recieved about how to be successful at work was …
“Get along with your boss”
No-one gets promoted unless you get along with your boss … No-one.
The trick is to figure out what your boss wants.
If your boss is interested in clear, well defined, and measurable outcomes (such as a P&L), then deliver those.
If your boss is interested in vague, general, hard to measure goals (or simply wants to look good), then this is the hard part, and where it is tempting to ‘suck up’