Even with effective mentoring relationships in the workplace, employees can feel “stalled” in their careers. Often, what seems to be missing from their professional life is someone with influence and “clout” within the organization to help them advance to the next level. That someone can be called a “sponsor.” It’s evident from the previous line that a mentor is not necessarily a sponsor. And, more often than not, the sponsor you’re looking for may never have served as your mentor. Before you go looking for a sponsor, consider these three essential requirements for career advancement:
- Opportunity: there needs to be a “job opening” for which you meet management’s qualifications in terms of your objective professional and personal attributes.
- Timing: you need to be “ready” to step into the new role and achieve success in that role…success as defined by management’s needs for that role.
- Sponsorship: there needs to be someone who steps up and sponsors you to be considered for that advancement…someone who, usually by his/her previous success in the workplace and knowledge of the job, has the confidence of management generally and is perceived by management to have good judgment in personnel matters specifically
Now that you know how sponsors fit into career advancement, here is an action plan for you:
- Keep your antennae up for specific job openings that to you would represent career advancement
- Think honestly about how your professional and personal attributes would qualify (or disqualify!) you for the specific advancement that’s potentially open to you
- If you think you are a strong candidate for a specific advancement, talk to your mentor and/or to your direct supervisor about your interest in contributing to the company in that new role and why and how you could be successful in that role. Ask for their advice regarding how to move forward as a candidate.
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