I had a recent conversation with a gentleman who wanted to discuss his career plans with me. He is a college graduate, working for a large firm that has many retail locations around the country. His degree was not in business but he was definitely working in a for profit environment.
His situation was that he had been employed for the firm for about a year and a half and he wanted a promotion. He believed that because he had been there for that long, he deserved one. Maybe not exactly deserved one, but that he wanted one, badly enough to pick up the phone and call me to talk about it. And, to talk about his options, both in the company and out of it.
Not that it matters, but he is in his mid twenties. He could have just as easily been in his 30’s, 40’s or 50’s.
As the conversation started, I heard a familiar tune playing in the background. Perhaps you’ve heard it: The Entitlement Blues. To be sure, I have been guilty of singing it out loud more than a few times myself over the course of my career.
I realized that I am no Socrates, but I wanted him to discover for himself what the issue really was. So, I asked questions, starting with asking about how the organization was organized; did it have so many locations supervised by a district manager, so many district managers supervised by a regional manager and so forth. Once that was confirmed, I asked how many locations his district manager supervised, and the answer I was given was ten.
“Where do you rank in that list of ten?” I asked, making sure to note that 10 was the best store and 1 was the worst. The answer I heard was that his location was sixth, but, he added that the ranking was based in tenure, or seniority.
Super Job For You
Taking away tenure, I asked him, how did he measure up on the list, was he a great manager? Or was he a very good manager, or a good manager, or a fair manager, based on the metrics that organizations use to measure success?
He thought about that for a couple of quick minutes and said he thought he would still be ranked in fourth place.
Why, I asked him, would I promote you over the three managers who you gave higher ratings to? Just because you want a promotion isn’t good enough.
At this point I had a flashback to the movie Top Gun where the young pilot is being chewed out by his commander, saying something to the effect that “you have to do it better than the other guys.” It was about 20 years ago that I was in a similar situation to this young man I was talking to, and I remember how badly I wanted a promotion, a change in title, something that would make others stand up a little straighter and take notice of me.
The advice I was given at that time consisted of three short phrases: learn what you need to know; shore up your weaknesses; and, no guts no glory—in other words, be willing to take risks to achieve your goals.
That same advice applies to this young man.
He had been working at this company for a year and a half, but he did not grasp the key metrics that could help him make his move from the middle of the pack to the top.
In many organizations, basic metrics revolve around revenues, costs, profits and projects. While some numbers may be closely guarded, if you are a manager, you need to know how you can positively impact the company’s numbers.
He did not say that he had ever reviewed his numbers with his immediate supervisor or asked for input to make the numbers better, but if he did, I explained, it would be a good start. If nothing else, it would get him learning about the basics, and it could very well cast him in a different light in the eyes of his supervisor.
He admitted that he had not been back to school since he graduated, and I suggested that he invest in his future by taking classes in business that would make him more valuable to his current employer.
I encouraged him to spend as much time as possible with his boss as possible, without being a pest, because his boss could teach him a lot about the business. I suggested that if the opportunity presented itself, that he volunteer to take on a special project or extra work assignment that would give him visibility. Should this happen, I made it clear, he had to do an extraordinary job or he would always be tarnished with the reputation that he had screwed up something big.
Getting a promotion (or a raise) isn’t about just putting in your time. In the end, it means doing a consistently excellent job over and above what everyone else does, simply to distinguish yourself. This cannot just happen around annual evaluation time; it needs to take place every day until it becomes who you are: someone who does more than is expected.
He is now enrolled at Pepperdine in an MBA program.
I hope he has learned that just getting a degree at any level and taking a job won’t necessary qualify anyone for a promotion.
Manufacturing
