Early in my profession, I missed out on promotions despite the fact that I labored exhausting. As an engineer by coaching, I assumed my success can be performance-based. I mistakenly thought that my worth to a corporation can be measured solely by my technical abilities — how rapidly 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 neglected picture and publicity. Harvey Coleman’s 1996 research on profession development revealed that profession success will depend on a mix of efficiency, picture, and publicity (PIE). In reality, 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 Status 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 effectively as a result of I lacked social abilities. Although I improved my promoting abilities considerably after a yr, the poor impression my colleagues and executives had of me was fastened. It was troublesome to vary their minds. If I had stayed on, I’d have been a mediocre salesperson at finest. So, I left to pursue my grasp’s in finance.
After 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 status not simply as a talented structurer but additionally as a wonderful coach. This status led to invites from gross sales heads throughout Asia to coach their groups and clients, considerably enhancing my private model.
How you can Construct Your Private Model
Develop a signature ability, one thing that’s totally different out of your core experience however may be integrated into your work.
As an illustration, in case you’re a junior analysis analyst in an asset administration firm, you could possibly develop video modifying abilities. By providing to shoot and edit movies for senior colleagues presenting at funding conferences, you’ll be seen as a precious group participant whom they wish to convey alongside to occasions.
When 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 special mild. Study to be a storyteller. Tales resonate extra deeply than information and figures. Use your tales to let individuals learn about your character, skills, and values. They’re essential components of your private model.
Publicity: How Properly Do Folks Know You?
Publicity is about guaranteeing that the proper individuals — your colleagues and senior leaders — are conscious of your contributions. With out visibility, you received’t get promoted.
I realized this the exhausting method. After 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 advised him I couldn’t host the assembly as a result of I used to be busy getting ready for my skilled exams. However this was simply an excuse. In actuality, I feared public talking. He received 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 effectively in your job however don’t communicate up in conferences, you’re making it troublesome for managers to learn about your work. Even when your personal boss desires to advertise you, nobody else within the firm will assist you as a result of they hardly know you. It comes all the way down to this easy equation:
How good you might be × Your presentation abilities = How good individuals assume you might be
So not solely should you do good work, however you have to additionally seize alternatives to let individuals know in regards to the work you do.
How you can Improve Publicity
- Communicate Up Throughout Conferences: Share your insights, ask considerate questions, and ensure your voice is heard.
- Volunteer for Excessive-Visibility Duties: For instance, provide to emcee the corporate’s annual dinner.
- Pursue Worldwide Alternatives: Inside transfers to totally different workplaces or international locations can considerably enhance 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 International Group: Attend CFA occasions exterior your property 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.
