A manager
we’ll call Tom was a midlevel sales executive at a Fortune 500 company. After a
dozen or so years there, he was thriving—he made his numbers, he was well
liked, he got consistently positive reviews. He applied for a promotion that
would put him in charge of a high-profile worldwide product-alignment
initiative, confident that he was the top candidate and that this was the
logical next move for him, a seemingly perfect fit for his skills and
ambitions. His track record was solid. He’d made no stupid mistakes or
career-limiting moves, and he’d had no run-ins with upper management. He was
stunned, then, when a colleague with less experience got the job. What was the
matter?
As far as
Tom could tell, nothing. Everyone was happy with his work, his manager assured
him, and a recent 360-degree assessment confirmed her view. Tom was at or above
the norm in every area, strong not only in delivering results but also in
problem solving, strategic thinking, and inspiring others to top performance.
“No need to reinvent yourself,” she said. “Just keep doing what you’re doing.
Go with your strengths.”
But how?
Tom was at a loss. Should he think more strategically? Become even more
inspiring? Practice problem solving more intently?
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