Re: Asking for a promotion in the US workplace
 

That's all good advice, but my employer rarely if ever "promotes" anyone - vacancies are posted and you apply for them .... then the points you suggested come into play in varying degrees, to determine who gets the role.

Recently one of my managers noted that I was neither titled nor remunerated comparably with my "peers", despite in some cases having more experience. He told me he would work to get me a promotion. I am not holding my breath. :(

ETA - my experience of your point 4 is that the more you do that other people won't do, the more indispensable you make yourself in the role you currently have. Much I have enjoyed pursuing that sort of strategy in multiple jobs throughout my career, it to my chagrin that the people who seem to get promoted are the ones who don't get bogged down in the minutiae of their current role but who spend their time demonstrating their suitability for the role they desire while largely ignoring the job that they are supposed to be doing.

One of my colleagues almost entirely ignored a significant project that he was tasked with completing, repeatedly assuring his immediate manager that the project was on target for completion, when in fact here had been almost no progress at all. Instead sucked up to a manager two or three tiers higher up the corporate tree. He deserved to have been fired for the mess he left, which blew up in the face of his immediate manager, and reduced one of his peers to tears when the finger of blame was pointed at her. Meanwhile, before the mess became apparent, he was plucked out and given a plumb assignment in another office, where he proceeded to irritate, alienate, and thoroughly p裏-off pretty much everyone he came into contact with. But none of this prevented him returning a year later to his previous location to be given an entire team to manage on the basis of his "successes" :rolleyes: In fairness he seems to be more useful at this more senior level where he can encourage others and has less actual hands-on work to do himself. :lol:

Re: Asking for a promotion in the US workplace
 

Do you work for my company? :)

Another voice added to the chorus of "know your culture and your industry" but it does seem far more normal and acceptable to be openly ambitious in the US than in the UK and to say that you want a promotion and pay rise. The only other comment I can add over and above the good stuff on this thread is to look at colleagues who have recently been promoted and see what they did to get there and if any of that could apply to you.

Re: Asking for a promotion in the US workplace
 

I quite like the idea of the email too, but want to be sure it is read and acted upon.

To be clear, I am not going for a different or open position. Rather, I am going for a grade bump in the position I have (from Bottle Washer to Senior Bottle Washer, let's say) due to increased and higher-level responsibilities I have been taking on/am about to take on. As far as I can tell, this kind of promotion is given mostly only when someone agitates for it. So if I don't push myself forward it won't happen, much as the English in me wants to just do good work and modestly wait to be noticed.

I work for a charity, so I have to be a little careful about talking about the whole "I want to make more money" thing, although everybody knows what these things are really about. But the time is now due to these other shifts I mentioned.

It took me almost three years and three attempts to get into the head office - what I lack in knowledge and ability I make up for in obstinacy.

Re: Asking for a promotion in the US workplace
 

Also, when you want them to do something that you need done, seed the idea in such a way as to make them feel it was their idea all along.

Managing up.....

Re: Asking for a promotion in the US workplace
 

Seems most of this advice is mostly geared towards office type jobs?

Re: Asking for a promotion in the US workplace
 

I have been in some companies where sleeping with the boss can get you promoted, but that is not something I would do.

Re: Asking for a promotion in the US workplace
 

I was going to ask the same thing! I mean, it's possible that we all work for the same corporate entity.

Re: Asking for a promotion in the US workplace
 

I think this is just what happens. Sometimes its more to do with your golf handicap than how good you are at your job. Sometimes it's dependent on how believable the BS you give your boss is. Some bosses are smarter than others.

Re: Asking for a promotion in the US workplace
 

As a people manager, one of the easiest ways to allow me to promote you is by starting to do the job already. It makes justifying the promotion so much easier to the VP who signs off any promotion.

Re: Asking for a promotion in the US workplace
 

Right. Despite what everybody else is saying about their particular situations (again --- culture and environment dictate which approach should be taken) it sounds like you and I work in similar environments. Which means that we have to create these opportunities for ourselves.

How comfortable are you with your boss? How often do you see her? Do you have reason to believe she would ignore an email and/or simply never respond or act upon it?

Re: Asking for a promotion in the US workplace
 

She's relatively new and an unknown (my boss, that is). She has only become my boss due to someone else getting the boot. However, I am clear that an email alone will not do it so my options seem to be:

• Email and leave a printed copy of it on her desk (along with my old and self-written new job desc.) Follow up method tbd

I don't think I can/should do it all in person since that puts her on the spot. My hope is that she will consult HR, where I have somewhat seeded the ground already (strategery).

Re: Asking for a promotion in the US workplace
 

Up until now, how have you normally been communicating with her?

Re: Asking for a promotion in the US workplace
 

Almost entirely by email, but that was before I became her direct report and had 1:1 meetings with her.

Re: Asking for a promotion in the US workplace
 

This is a challenge. I say that mainly because she is an unknown entity. My opinion FWIW is to certainly go ahead with the email. You could base your follow-up strategy on how/if she responds to the email. There are only a couple of different scenarios and you just need to get it straight in your mind what your reaction should be to any and every eventuality.


:thumbsup: Good luck to you.

Re: Asking for a promotion in the US workplace
 

I can think of places I have worked where it was nigh on impossible to be promoted internally, but if you left you could come back at a much higher level. Jobs were advertised internally but you know that the beneficiary was lined up.

Others where it was expected that most vacancies would be filled internally and only if that was not possible would external candidates be considered.

So depends.