When—and How—to Advance Your Career

Abstract

passed over for an executive promotion, he didn’t sulk and he didn’t quit. Instead, Laxton, who had been supervising a multistate region for ARAMARK Healthcare, asked for and became clinical engineering chief at Duke University Medical Center, a facility serviced by ARAMARK. “I didn’t see myself ‘on hold,’” he says. His 10-year stint working at Duke and another facility broadened his experience, boosted his self-confidence, and scored points with his ARAMARK bosses. As Laxton puts it, a sailboat battling a headwind has to tack sideways to keep forging ahead. His move paid off: Laxton is now ARAMARK’s vice president for strategic partnerships. David Francoeur, ARAMARK’s vice president for clinical technology services, handled his career move another way. He worked his way up the career ladder by switching companies. “The benefit was that I have been in every facet of this business,” says Francoeur, who joined ARAMARK in 2007. Both approaches have pros and cons. Sticking with the same company can be advantageous when the economy is weak, and long-term employees usually enjoy stability and familiarity. “When you change jobs, you’re the first to get laid off if something happens,” says Timothy Hopkins, an executive recruiter and vice president at Stephens International Recruiting. But there can be draw-backs: limited diversity of experience, a finite number of promotions, professional complacency, and often less money than an offer from an outside firm that is eager to sweeten the deal. Money, however, shouldn’t be the biggest influence in deciding whether to jump ship. “You have to look at it through the long-term lens,” says Steve Brainard, Midwest regional recruiting manager for Kelly Engineering Resources. “What’s the culture like, what’s the management style, what are the job opportunities like?” A recent Gallup poll found that almost half of U.S. workers were very satisfied with their jobs, yet only about a third were confident of being promoted. So how do you take advantage of in-house openings to show the boss that you’re ambitious but not cut throat, eager but not desperate, and willing without whining to make the extra effort? A key step, experts advise, is to draw up a career plan and discuss those goals with your supervisor once or twice a year, perhaps during annual performance reviews. “Make them aware you want to make it a long-term commitment,” says Hopkins. While some supervisors might feel threatened by ambitious workers, most welcome employees who want to improve. Greg Duncan, who started his career as a journeyman biomed technician, got on the fast track by moving to When—and How—to Advance Your Career