P.O.P
This article is inspired by a conversation with Ellen Barton about leadership. Thanks, Ellen, for co-writing this piece. Maybe this is the first chapter in the book you will write.
Climbing the corporate ladder is not as simple as you would think. Often when we are looking to progress inside our organization, we assume that the path is based on rational decision-making and objective measures. As we all know, that is rarely the case. We believe that if we perform at a high level we will be seen as someone who can handle the next step on the career ladder. Performance is essential to get recognized, to demonstrate your skills, and is typically something that is easily measured, defined, and documented. But your performance is not enough to move up.
Assuming your performance is good, you also need an opportunity. Opportunity is not just applying to an available position in the organization. It also includes smaller opportunities such as participation in projects and committees. Many people believe that if you are a good performer and there are opportunities that you should move relatively easily up in the organization. Again, reality does not seem to align with our beliefs about what it takes to move up.
A factor that is likely the biggest factor in our moving up in the organization is perception. How are you seen by those that are on the hiring committee? What is your reputation with your colleagues? Perception is difficult to control and is influenced by human bias, incomplete information, and the dreaded rumor mill. You can, however, do many things that can positively influence how you are perceived. You need to know yourself and how your behaviors impact those you work with. And then figure out how to be yourself, but also moderate those elements of your personality that can have a more negative impact on how you are perceived.
When you are looking to move to the next role in your organization, be cognizant of these three factors. Reflect on them deeply, develop a plan to improve your chances that can increase your performance, generate opportunity, and be perceived as a positive contributor.
I now want to look at these three components purely from a leadership perspective.
When looking at performance through a lens of leadership, it becomes much more difficult to describe and measure. Your contributions are often hidden behind the scenes and the performance of your followers is what is often visible and measurable. However, if you want to be a better leader, what are the things you need to do to be seen as a high-performer? Here are some suggestions - build strong and diverse relationships, manage and deal with conflict, show care and compassion, and create and innovate. Be sure to determine how you can measure and demonstrate the impacts of these actions tangibly.
Opportunity from a leadership point of view is about how you find and create opportunity for yourself and more importantly how you do so for your team. Leaders will often forgo an opportunity for themselves so that one of their followers can reap the rewards or take on the challenge. Great leaders are often inundated with opportunity. People want to work with them. When you are seen as and act as a great leader opportunity finds you easily. And if there are few or no opportunities presenting themselves, leaders will create them. They are often able to see into the future and predict a new course of action before others.
Strong leaders often are not concerned about how they are Perceived by others in the short view. They are often more concerned about the realities of getting things done by supporting and developing their followers. This does not mean they are not aware of how they are perceived by others; it just means that good leaders understand that changing the perception of others is slow going and energy-consuming work and they realize that the best way to ensure a positive reputation comes from the words and actions of their followers. A challenge for those wanting to become better leaders is how they perceive their own abilities. Developing leaders will often underestimate their capabilities to lead, they don't think they have what it takes. This negative self-perception is reinforced by traditional organizational policies and processes, systemic barriers, key performance metrics, and negative social norms. A leader will work to raise the perception of their followers and the group's mission over raising their own perception and personal goals. This ability to sacrifice is at the heart of sustainable and impactful leadership.
P.O.P. - be aware of these concepts whether you are looking to advance in your organization or if you are looking to lead and create conditions of success for others. Hopefully, you can work in an organization where both perspectives are aligned and valued. If you are not in that kind of organizational environment, you may find that your pursuit of leadership comes at the expense of climbing the corporate ladder or that climbing the corporate ladder comes at the expense of being a great leader. There is no wrong choice in that circumstance if you are aware of the trade-offs and are comfortable with the outcomes.
