Fairygodboss Community, I need your help!

Fairygodboss Community, I need your help!

I took a job at a startup company over 3 years ago. After 6 months in, they promised I would be getting a direct report. I get great annual reviews, and I have had a promotion or 2 in that time, however I still do not manage. I loved managing in the past, and found it extremely rewarding. I love helping people reach their full potential.

Many people have become managers since this promise, though in different departments. My own team has grown, they just haven't put any of them under me. So, at my 3 year anniversary I started looking for a new role outside my company. Right when I did, my manager came to me to see if I wanted to instead take over the entire team. She would be changing roles and focusing on something else.

At the time, I was terrified by this thought. Could I run an entire department? How could I make this team even better? It was all very scary, but also incredibly exciting! I was looking forward to the transition in the coming months, and had already started coming up with ideas. Finally after 3 years I would be managing again.

Well, I just received the news that this will no longer be happening, and I am truly devastated. My manager is staying put. They are back to telling me I will have 1 direct report that we will start recruiting for soon.

I honestly don't know what to do at this point. If I worked for a huge corporation, 3 years (or more) makes sense for this type of growth. But in this startup environment (though still a smaller company), I feel slighted. There is so much blood, sweat, and tears (oh so many tears) I have put into building this department. I have asked what I can do to improve my skillset, I have taken on more work and challenging projects. Again, positive feedback. I honestly love my company and the people, but want to do what I truly love.

The problem is I work in HR, and there are not a lot of open roles right now in my area because of so many layoffs. Also, while I have managed before, it was not in an HR role. So, the possibility of finding a role in my field where I could manage, is pretty low. So, do I:

1. Stick it out with my current company and hope that we will in fact start recruiting for this role. I will probably not be getting more reports after this (they said it was a possibility, but I will not be holding my breath).
2. Look for an IC (individual contributor) role at another company and hope I can grow there.
3. Or...? Something else I haven't thought of???