As you likely already know (because my readers are the smartest!) that if you want to rise up in your organization, it’s super important to have someone in your leadership pulling for you. A good sponsor is your advocate for promotion. They will seek out assignments for you to grow your skills, increase your visibility within the organization, and help you shine. Note that a sponsor is well placed in the organization and is motivated to develop you as a leader. This is different than a mentor, who gives you advice and a shoulder to lean on.
For some people, it’s not clear how to identify and build a relationship with a potential sponsor. For others, reaching out for a sponsor feels transactional and awkward.
Here are a few tips to get you started:
1. Get clear on future ideal positions for yourself – it will be easier to find the right sponsors if you understand your career aspirations. An influential leader in one organizational division may not have much sway in another. I certainly found this to be true in the global matrix organizations where I’ve worked.
Maybe you have lots of interests and aren’t sure where to focus. That’s perfectly fine! In that case, pick a few possible career futures you can visualize yourself in.
2. Pick the right people – find someone above you who has influence within senior leadership, a power player with clout. This may not necessarily be someone who is warm and fuzzy, or who you naturally gravitate towards. Pick people who really drive decisions in the organization, no matter how intimidating that might feel. This means paying attention to the power dynamics of your workplace! The person with the influence may not have the fanciest title. Look out for that person your colleagues listen to in meetings, or the person who your peers or boss cite as having special insight or doing especially great work.
You’re looking for an ally, not necessarily a friend. If you’re in a large organization, look a few steps above your level (your manager’s manager, for example), with some knowledge of your role.
3. Do excellent work – the sponsor will likely want to promote the career of someone who makes them look good! They’ll go the extra mile for the person they feel makes both them and the organization more successful. They need to trust that when they toss you the ball, you’re going to run with it and score.
Know and leverage your strengths, looking for ways to add additional value and resources to the projects and teams you’re part of. Manage your potential downsides with great care (feedback is great here – from a trusted colleague or a more formal 360 assessment). Develop your influence skills (you can download a free e-book on influence here). Build and maintain your network. Master your area of expertise with continuous learning. And work on your communication skills and office politics. It matters.
4. Raise your head up – good work alone does not speak for itself. Find ways to be more visible, starting with speaking up in meetings. This might be difficult for those who are on the shy or quiet side, but you have something important to say too. And if you tend to be quiet, you are likely a good listener and observant. You may see important points that the talkers in the room are missing. Speak up!
Volunteer to lead projects or teams. Take or make opportunities to give public presentations. You don’t need to toot your own horn: people will see your good work and ideas and will speak well of you behind your back.
5. Always be giving – find ways to add value to your sponsor. We often under-estimate what we do well because it comes so easy to us. But what comes easy to you may be extremely difficult for someone else. Pay attention to what your sponsor needs and give it to them.
One place to start is intel and market trends you’re picking up on because you’re closer to the front lines. Your sponsor is in a strategic position and needs that kind of information to do their job well. Look out for information in line with your sponsor’s strategic priorities. Presenting this information will make you look more strategic too – a core competency for your next promotion.
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