The year-end performance review is fast approaching; this is the moment where you finally have the opportunity to discuss your overall performance from this year, demonstrate your ambitions for career progression, skills development, and improved performance for the year ahead, with the potential for being put forward for a promotion or pay rise.
If you’ve set your sights on progressing up the career ladder into a more senior role next year, now is the time to sell yourself to your manager, whose feedback will go to HR and their senior managers.
But how do you adequately prove that you have what it takes to be picked for the top post? How do you effectively demonstrate your leadership skills and potential?
1. Provide Examples Of Team-Building
When preparing the notes for your self-appraisal, and in conversation with your boss, be prepared with a list of examples (you may not need to sue all of them, but have them on hand just in case) of where you have been a strong collaborator or effective communicator in your team. How have you pitched in and helped another team member when it wasn’t necessarily in your job description? How have you fostered a positive team culture and proactively jumped in to make a team project successful? Examples that demonstrate these prove that you possess the skills it takes to run a successful and highly collaborative team.
2. Provide Examples Of Critical Thinking Under Pressure
Think back to a time you had to think on the spot in a challenging situation or emergency, without any external support from your boss or any other superior. How did you handle the situation and how was it ultimately resolved? How did you solve problems with your approach and make informed decisions that positively impacted your team or the larger organization? These make for fantastic examples to prove that you can think and act under pressure, and are capable of confident decision-making.
3. Provide Examples Of Employee Development
Have any newbies in your team benefited from your guidance? Did you ever step in and offered to train or upskill new and existing team members, lending a helping hand to support with your expertise wherever needed? Have you been involved in peer mentorship or joined any other training initiatives? Providing examples of where you have enabled professional growth and improved the performance of other employees is a strong sign that you possess leadership skills, as you will be doing the same when you are promoted—but just on a larger and more intensive level.
4. Provide Examples Of Professional Development
One of the core qualities of a leader is their passion for ongoing personal growth and professional development, which is driven by their relentless pursuit of excellence. Becoming the best at what you do through proactively undertaking training, and seeking ways to expand your leadership skills, will help your manager take your ambitions seriously.
Part of the professional development aspect is your ability and willingness to take on feedback, regardless of the source, and act on it with a high level of emotional intelligence. You could thank your manager for any constructive feedback they’ve given you and discuss ways you’ve implemented their advice into improving your work and performance standards.
5. Provide Examples Of Time Management
As a manager you will be in the fortunate position of having more autonomy over your time and schedule, being able to allocate slots of your day and week as you wish, according to the needs and priorities of the business. But beyond this, you’ll also be responsible for the organization and scheduling of different tasks for your team. As such, you’ll need to demonstrate evidence of your solid time management skills, sharing what strategies you use to combat distractions, meet deadlines, and prioritize tasks.
Through preparing practical examples of where you have provided value to your organization through proactive team collaboration and support, and showcasing where you’ve used your initiative to solve critical issues and confront challenges, you can place yourself in a favorable position to progress up the ladder and bag a promotion for the new year.
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