You ask: I’m a senior manager in my company and have just found out that a new post has been created between me and my boss. I take this as a sign that I’m not destined for the boardroom. To be completely honest I’ve got much further up the management ladder than I expected considering my humble beginnings.
Whilst I’m very comfortable working with my direct reports I’m the first to admit that I’m far less confident when it comes to talking to my peers and senior executive. So I’m not sure how to approach my boss to discuss my career prospects.
I do have what I consider some good ideas for moving the company forward and certainly do not think I’m ready to ‘sit on the sidelines’ just yet. How would you suggest I start a conversation about how I feel with my boss?
Janet answers: You haven’t said whether you think this position is warranted or not.That would help guide my advice. I feel I need more information such as:
* Is your whole organisation in flux?
* Has anything similar happened to your peers?
* Is your boss in the habit of making unilateral decisions?
You seem to be suggesting that this new position has been created just to stop you progression to the boardroom. If your company was in the middle of a reorganisation then there may a number of reasons why this position has been created. Why not find out before taking any actions that might be based on incorrect assumptions.
You also seem to be suggesting that it is only you that has been singled out for this treatment. Are you sure that this is true. You yourself have admitted that you are not entirely comfortable with your superiors so should you put your trust solely in your instincts here?
I mentioned earlier that it was interesting that your boss hadn’t shared his decision process with you. Is this normal? If the answer is yes then you can draw no useful conclusions from this decision! If the answer is no then I’d certainly want to know why they have acted out of character on this occasion. Again there could be many reasons why but you will only find out the facts by asking your boss. In fact this scenario would provide you with an ideal opportunity to approach your boss. Why not do this from a position of curiosity rather than suspicion; it will lead to a more constructive discussion.
You say that you are the “first to admit that I’m far less confident when it comes to talking to my peers and senior executive”. How does this lack of confidence manifest itself? Do you tend to hold back on making contributions until you are asked? You do have ideas, you have said as much, but if you do not champion them how will others know what you have to offer?
In your question you asked me two things; how to approach your boss to discuss your career prospects and how to start a conversation about how you feel.
How often do you speak with your boss? If it is rarely and then only in formal meetings I would suggest that a discussion about career prospects will be easier than one about feelings. Of course your career prospects or perceived lack of them is very much linked to how you feel. So I would suggest that asking for a meeting about your career may naturally lead into one about how you feel about your current situation.
You don’t need to commit yourself to sharing your feelings with your boss right up front. Why not wait and see how the meeting goes and what your boss has to say about this new position; you never know it might turn out to make good business sense and open up career opportunities you had never considered.
Assuming that you will want to share how you feel about the situation with your boss it would be sensible to plan out what you intend to say. Practicing with a friend or member of your family or just in front of the mirror might help.
Should you boss not be in a very receptive mood then it might not be the right time to talk about your feelings. A useful tactic is to bring the meeting to a close but ask for a follow-on meeting. As you do this outline what you like more time to discuss and why. This will give your boss a choice; to carry on (as they now know what you want to discuss) or postpone so that they can be better prepared when you meet again. However don’t leave without scheduling the next meeting.
You say you’re not ready to ‘sit on the sidelines’ and I believe you so make sure you are ready to promote yourself and your ideas. If I was your boss the first question I would be asking you is why have you waited until now to share these ideas with me? So be prepared to answer that one.
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