Already Planning Your Next Promotion? Here’s 5 Tips During the Interview Process to Ensure Your Timeline Matches With Your Employer’s

We polled over 80 candidates—54% of them said that they expect to be promoted after 1.5–2 years in a role.

With those timelines in mind, how can candidates ensure they are joining a new company that is in line with their promotional timeline expectations?

Candidates: Here’s 5 things to do to ensure your potential new company is on the same page as you are:

1. Research on LinkedIn people in similar roles or who have worked at the company—explore their career journey at the company you are interviewing with.

2. Consider who you’re up against—do you have different qualifications than those currently on the team? If so, that can help you stand out. If not, you may be up against more competition when it comes time for a promotion.

3. If you have an “in” with the company, try to uncover what their promotional policy is. For example, sometimes, a new role doesn’t have to become available and you can be “promoted in place”. Other times, you must wait for someone to leave a role or for a new role to be created to get to the next step.

4. Understand that normally the higher up you get, the more time you will spend in a role before getting promoted. It’s much easier to go from a Coordinator to a Manager than it is to go from VP to CEO.

5. Understand that your career is a journey and every step is different. Maybe your new company doesn’t have the promotional timeline you are hoping for—but it could be a great step in your career nonetheless and worth weighing all of the pros and cons. And finally, nothing is permanent. You are in the driver’s seat of your career!