Demystifying Promotions: Use The 5 C's to Guide Your Decision
Promotions are exciting chapters in our team's growth and our team members' lives. But how can we turn the page when we're not sure if the story is ready to unfold?
To help you answer this question, we’ve developed a roadmap – the '5 C's of Purposeful Promotion'.
As you move through each item, ask yourself whether your team member effectively meets the criteria. The more ‘boxes’ you tick, the more you can count on making a purposeful promotion.
Capability
The first signpost is capability. This isn't solely about your team member’s current skills; it's about how you see their potential unfolding, too. The best place for your team member to be at pre-promotion is to have a clear ability to ‘level up’, while revealing glimpses of the larger role they can play in your organisation.
Contribution
Next, we consider contribution. Look for team members who've made notable, positive marks on your organisation. While the past is not necessarily a reliable indicator of the future, those stepping into a leadership role must take their personal impact (and contribution to the organisation and its people) seriously.Commitment
A committed team member is a powerful force for positive change. They show loyalty, reliability, and, importantly, genuine enthusiasm and care for living your organisation's vision and values. Commitment isn't just about time in the business — it's about personal dedication to a higher purpose.Cause
A purposeful promotion should light a spark in your team member. The new role needs to ignite their passion, align with their personal purpose, and allow their existing strengths to emerge further. There should also be commercial ‘cause’ within the organisation to promote, rather than promoting a team member to show appreciation.Capacity
It’s important to ground your decision in current reality. Does your team member have the capacity for greater challenges? It's crucial that they have the mental space and time to embrace their new responsibilities.
Remember, promotions are not just about rewarding past performance. They're also about igniting potential and investing in your organisation’s impact.
We are not born leaders, though some particularly bright kids might have us thinking otherwise! Being a Modern Leader means growing our skillset in the core skills we need to be a leader in the new world of work. Our Modern Leaders program is designed to help your leaders step up into that world.
