Ask HN: Why do you have to do something extra to get promoted?

[youngatlas1]

I am working from last 12 years in software.During this time I have worked with couple of startups and some fortune 100 companies.When I started my career, during my 1:1 it was always told to me that I have to do something extra to be promoted, which indirectly meant work on something extra other than your usual day to day job. Now I am an EM and during my conversation with my peers it's same. They don't want to promote a person who is doing their job effectively. They want someone with that extra edge. Why is it like this? Why can't I just do my work go home and enjoy my free time.Why do I have to put in extra work over the weekends or in my free time to build something extra to get promoted. I am fed up of this.

[romanhn]

It's fairly straightforward but widely misunderstood (or misapplied), hence the level of cynicism in these comments. Every level carries with it a certain set of expectations. Once you get promoted, you're now subject to those expectations. If I, as your manager, promote you to the next level without having evidence of your ability to perform at the next level, and you then bomb, it's bad news for everyone. For you (you get a bad review after previously doing quite well presumably), for your peers (they're seeing someone promoted above their ability, potentially impacting others around), and for me (it's my failure as a manager). There's always going to be some amount of luck involved in whether a promotion is successful or not, and it's my job as your manager to derisk it as much as possible. Doing your job at your level well is only evidence of just that, there needs to be some consistency of operating at the next level to the extent reasonable.

To be clear, I'm not saying you should be working extra hours to do this. If that's required, either your manager is not reasonable or you're likely not there yet and if I were to promote you, you might burn out soon.

[amscotti]

It took me a while to realize, but after a couple of experiences, it became very clear that promotions were often used as a carrot on a stick to make me do extra work or achieve tasks that my boss wanted done but didn't have resources for. I'm now very wary of any manager who tells me I'm performing beyond expectations, but that I need to do X to get a promotion.

From my personal experience, I have found that it's easier to get a promotion and raise by moving to a new job. I really wish this wasn't true. I would love to find a place where I'm completely happy with the work and can stay for many years, being paid fair compensation without the need for job-hopping.

[mrkeen]

The true cost of anything is the opportunity cost.

If the cost of you being promoted is higher than the cost of you staying where you are, you will stay where you are.

> Why can't I just do my work go home and enjoy my free time.

You can.

[giantg2]

"Why can't I just do my work go home and enjoy my free time."

You can, at your current level.

Promotions are all political. You just have to find people who like you.

[johnpython]

Promotions are for schmucks. One can easily get a promotion from the free market when their boss refuses to give it to them

[pestatije]

best way to get a promotion is to switch jobs. Be job-jumping ready and make your manager aware that staying in you current position is an invitation to leave

[aduwah]

You need to embrace the bullshit.

You have someone who is decent? That person is now not decent, but he is an amazing individual that inspires others and knocks the KPIs off the chart.

There, it is this easy

Promotions without leaving a company are 90% of the time just a token effort to keep an employee around anyway. Don't overthink it

[Maro]

I can give you a manager's perspective:

- I work at a non-tech company's (retailer) tech org, managing Platform Eng, DE and DS

- I've worked as a SWE, DE, DS when I was an IC (also at FAANG)

- I have about ~50 people rolling up to me

- in a given year, I can promote about 2-4 people at this specific company, so less than 10%

- there are always more people who _want_ to get promoted

- so I'm always having _more_ conversations with people about "their promotions" than I can actually promote --- but I'm quite open about this

- I don't talk much about promotions during 1v1s unless the person is pushing for it, because of the above, there's already more people pushing for it than I can promote

- promotions aren't up to me --- at this company, I need about 5+ people to approve every promotion = me, my manager, my manager's manager, finance, my "local HR" and "central HR" (it's a big company)

- everybody in this chain except me is completely non-technical, so I need to be able to tell them a story --- "Jane is a great Data Engineer who's performing at level L+1" doesn't cut it

- it needs to be some story they can understand, preferably has some high-visibility project or person in it --- eg. "Led Project Foo for 1 year which is our org's Big Win this year" or "Built company-wide financial forecasts for the CFO"

- the above ^ doesn't have to be beyond normal 9-5 duties, and usually isn't

- in my case, my job is to start pushing for the promotion, and convince my manager to actually convince his manager and stick his neck out with Finance and HR --- and remind him 2x a week to push on it

- the easiest way to get a raise is not through promotions, it's to get a high outside offer, and either take that, or, come back and threaten you'll leave --- I can take that to HR and make things happen within a week, while a regular promotion here takes ~3-6 months

- Finance and HR obviously don't care about the whole thing, they're just trying to control costs and make sure trigger happy managers don't promote too many people / their friends

- I'm always very xparent with people about how promotions work, what the process is, where they stand --- and they appreciate it

- it's easier to get a good raise than a promotions, and at this company promotions don't get people more than a good raise --- so for people who are not already at the top of their band it's not worth it (we have very overlapping bands) in the sense that just arguing for a good raise is easier

A lot of what I write above are specific to my company, but all (big) companies will have a lot process and parties involved in pushing a promotion through --- so on average it won't be easy anywhere big, even if you're good and your manager is a good guy pushing for your case.

[comprev → Maro]

> xparent

Do you mean transparent?

[plimko]

Promotions are overrated. They only lead to more BS and less interesting work duties.