Looking to add value to my team and clear my path for additional responsibilities / promotion.

Anonymous

October 7,2021 at 1:36PM UTC

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Looking to add value to my team and clear my path for additional responsibilities / promotion. What would you bring to the conversation with your leadership team in terms of ideas?

I am thinking taking reporting off my manager's plate, serving as a mentor to new hires and possibly creating task forces for areas of improvement for the immediate team.

The problem is I am craving growth and further challenge but am unsure if I want to be a true people leader?

Thoughts? Advice?

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Meaghan Wagner, Goal Guru Leadership CoachOctober 7,2021 at 4:35PM UTC
I love the way you are thinking about your path to growth holistically within your team.
My top of mind thought is that you truly won't know until you try! Have a discussion with your manager, expressing the very ideas in this post:
- You are looking to add value to the team and take on additional responsibility to create a path for promotion.
- You were thinking of taking some reporting off their plate, and you were thinking it might look like XYZ
- You have some reservations about how being a people leader will resonate with you. Ask you boss for guidance, support and to stay in close contact on solutions if it turns out that path is not for you
Approaching the conversation this way invites your manager to be a collaborator in your growth with you and to contribute their expertise to that endeavor. It also invites them to express that their need for support and value lies elsewhere, opening up a potentially different path for you to pursue that you may never have thought of!
Good luck and keep us posted on how it goes!
AnonymousOctober 7,2021 at 7:40PM UTC
Thank you!! I will be heeding your advice.
Meaghan Wagner, Goal Guru Leadership CoachOctober 9,2021 at 12:53AM UTC
Good luck!!
AnonymousOctober 7,2021 at 6:37PM UTC
First and foremost there should be a discussion with your manager before coming up with a proposal on your own. He may have other plans for you or, at the very least, some ideas how he like his team to grow. You can offer your discussion points to get his feedback.
Once you have that discussion you can develop an informed proposed plan for developing/growing your role and responsibilities to support your manager's plan. Otherwise you're working in a vacuum and that wouldn't be a good use of your time.
Communication is always the best way to start navigating these things.
AnonymousOctober 7,2021 at 7:41PM UTC
Thank you! I will certainly take this advice. We have a call scheduled next week.