Getting that first managerial promotion in your marketing career is a huge deal, and it takes some forward planning! Each company is unique in regards to what it offers for upward mobility, but if you see a chance for you to move up, here are some tips to make you a top candidate when the Directors and VPs start planning.
- As ambitious people, I know we’re always trying to think about the next ten steps. But my very first piece of advice is to not get ahead of yourself. Do what you’ve been given, and do it well. Knocking your own work out of the ballpark is the foundational step. You want to be able to point at your great track record and remind people why you objectively deserve to be considered. Show that you work methodically and reliably, and consistently produce great results.
- Come up with a real framework and strategy for how you think about marketing and projects. It’s your “brand,” your “thing.” Develop a point of view on how you approach things, whether you’re in social media or graphic design.
- Pull it off well. Actually execute and get shit done.
- Show that you can reflect on your work. This is a real sign of maturity – that you look back, learn, and figure out how to keep getting better.
2. Display leadership skills. Leadership is a totally separate skillset that you need to prove in addition to marketing. As a junior employee, there are lots of ways that you can actively learn and show managerial skills.
- Be proactive. Think ahead about your work as well as the team’s work, because a manager is constantly looking to the future to make sure their team has everything they need to get work done.
- Be the kind of person who can motivate people and earn respect. You don’t need to be loved, but leaders who rule by fear are outdated. You also don’t need to be charismatic, necessarily, but you need to show that you have the makings of someone who can get the group to do something.
- Don’t be an emotional volcano. No one likes a manager who lets emotions rule her actions and words, because it’s not fair to the team. Therefore, no one wants to promote someone without EQ into a leadership role. Be professional, courteous, and approachable. Think long-term. Things will pass and they will be fixed, even if you think something is a huge deal now. Always try to work from a “problem solving” mindset, because that’s what leaders do.
- Be a team player. Leaders don’t win individually.
3. Demonstrate that you are coachable and willing to learn from people around you who have done this many times. Know that you’re smart, but young. I mean, even experienced CEOs realize that they have tons to learn from people around them! Seek wisdom from upper management, get feedback from peers. The smartest people are constantly learning and staying humble.
4. Prove that you can support the larger vision by bringing fresh thinking.
- Be a champion for the products or services that your company is offering. Marketing really helps drive company culture, and you can’t lead the team if you’re on the fence or less-than-enthusiastic about what you’re selling.
- Think big picture. A marketing manager will have to think about budgeting, hiring, and future-forward planning.
- A good manager doesn’t *only* know about marketing. They also work with sales, engineering, product, etc. Management is very interdisciplinary and needs to function with all parts of the company harmoniously, like a real organism. Sounds cheesy, but it’s true!
5. Put yourself in your boss’s shoes.
- Even if your boss absolutely loves you, they owe it to the company to make the best financial choice. If they promote you, is that the right choice for the company? Will they be investing in the right person? Make it clear that the answer is yes.
- Do you have strengths? Highlight them. Do you have weaknesses? Work on them.
Helpful Resources
