Early in my profession, I missed out on promotions though I labored exhausting. As an engineer by coaching, I assumed my success could be performance-based. I mistakenly thought that my worth to a company could be measured solely by my technical expertise — how shortly and precisely I might compute the costs of complicated monetary derivatives.
It wasn’t till years into my banking profession that I spotted my mistake: I had missed picture and publicity. Harvey Coleman’s 1996 research on profession development revealed that profession success depends upon a mixture of efficiency, picture, and publicity (PIE). The truth is, solely 10% of success correlates to efficiency, whereas picture accounts for 30%, and publicity for a staggering 60%.
Should you’re delivering outcomes however are nonetheless being handed over for promotions, it’s time to take inventory of the lacking items in your PIE.
Picture: Your Fame at Work
What are you recognized for at work? In my first job as a overseas change (FX) gross sales skilled at a Singapore financial institution, I didn’t do nicely as a result of I lacked social expertise. Although I improved my promoting expertise considerably after a yr, the poor impression my colleagues and executives had of me was mounted. It was troublesome to vary their minds. If I had stayed on, I might have been a mediocre salesperson at finest. So, I left to pursue my grasp’s in finance.
Once I joined Citi in 2001 as a derivatives structurer, I confirmed a powerful curiosity in instructing. I volunteered to conduct product coaching for each purchasers and colleagues. In a short time, I constructed a repute not simply as a talented structurer but additionally as a superb coach. This repute led to invites from gross sales heads throughout Asia to coach their groups and clients, considerably enhancing my private model.
Methods to Construct Your Private Model
Develop a signature ability, one thing that’s completely different out of your core experience however may be included into your work.
As an example, when you’re a junior analysis analyst in an asset administration firm, you might develop video modifying expertise. By providing to shoot and edit movies for senior colleagues presenting at funding conferences, you can be seen as a precious crew participant whom they need to deliver alongside to occasions.
In case you have already labored at your present firm for greater than a yr, altering your inner model could be a problem. I counsel specializing in growing your exterior model and letting it affect your inner standing.
Volunteering with a CFA society, organizing occasions, or serving as a speaker liaison are nice methods to do that. I’m proud to be a speaker on the CFA Institute LIVE 2025 occasion in Chicago subsequent Could. Share these experiences on LinkedIn and different shops, as I do, to showcase your capabilities as a grasp networker or organizer. Your employer will see you in a unique mild. Study to be a storyteller. Tales resonate extra deeply than details and figures. Use your tales to let individuals find out about your character, talents, and values. They’re essential elements of your private model.
Publicity: How Properly Do Folks Know You?
Publicity is about making certain that the precise individuals — your colleagues and senior leaders — are conscious of your contributions. With out visibility, you received’t get promoted.
I discovered this the exhausting method. Once I was a vp (VP, a mid-level rank) at an American financial institution, my boss went on vacation and requested me to current the weekly market replace to the gross sales and structuring groups throughout Asia on his behalf. I informed him I couldn’t host the assembly as a result of I used to be busy making ready for my skilled exams. However this was simply an excuse. In actuality, I feared public talking. He bought one other VP to do it as an alternative. By year-end, when it got here to promotion nominations, guess who my supervisor selected to advertise to director degree? That’s proper, not me, however the different VP.
Should you carry out nicely in your job however don’t converse up in conferences, you’re making it troublesome for managers to find out about your work. Even when your personal boss desires to advertise you, nobody else within the firm will help you as a result of they hardly know you. It comes right down to this straightforward equation:
How good you might be × Your presentation expertise = How good individuals suppose you might be
So not solely should you do good work, however you need to additionally seize alternatives to let individuals know concerning the work you do.
Methods to Improve Publicity
Converse Up Throughout Conferences: Share your insights, ask considerate questions, and ensure your voice is heard.
Volunteer for Excessive-Visibility Duties: For instance, supply to emcee the corporate’s annual dinner.
Pursue Worldwide Alternatives: Inner transfers to completely different places of work or international locations can considerably increase your publicity. I labored in London and Hong Kong throughout my profession, and these stints allowed me to construct relationships with world leaders.
Interact with the World Neighborhood: Attend CFA occasions exterior your own home nation to attach with a broader community.
Full Your PIE
Promotions require extra than simply exhausting work and outcomes. By mastering the PIE framework, you’ll place your self for long-term profession success.
