Latest / The Promotion Memo with Fexingo: Getting Visibility, Sponsors, and Executive Presence / How an Employee Got Promoted by Navigating Office Politics
Transcript
- Lucas: You hear 'office politics' and half the room flinches. It sounds manipulative — backroom deals, sucking up to the boss. But there's a version of it that's just… understanding how decisions actually get made. And that version can get you promoted. Luna: It's almost like a skill set, right? The people who are good at it tend to move up faster. But it's rarely taught. Lucas: Exactly. And today I want to talk about Priya — not her real name — a product manager at a large consumer goods company. She had strong execution skills, good performance reviews. But she kept getting passed over for senior roles. Eventually she realized it wasn't about her output. It was about her visibility and how she navigated the informal power structure. Luna: So she was doing the work but nobody knew her work mattered to the right people. Lucas: Right. She was a solo contributor in a silo. Her manager liked her, but her skip-level didn't know her name. And when promotion decisions came up, the people in the room were the ones she'd never built relationships with. Luna: Yeah, and that's actually more common than people think. There's research — I think it's from a study by the Harvard Business Review — that says political skill predicts promotion rates even more than performance ratings. Like, it's a better indicator. Lucas: That tracks with what Priya experienced. So she decided to treat office politics like a project. She mapped out the informal influence network — who actually shaped decisions. Not just titles, but whose opinions carried weight. She identified three key stakeholders: the head of marketing, a senior engineer who was seen as a thought leader, and a director of strategy who was tight with the VP. Luna: That's smart. Most people focus on their direct boss, but the real decisions happen in rooms you're not in. Lucas: Exactly. Then she figured out what each of those people cared about. The marketing head needed better data to justify campaign spend. The senior engineer wanted a smoother handoff between product and engineering. The strategy director was trying to push a new market entry. And Priya aligned her work to help them. Luna: So she created mutual wins. Not just 'I'll help you,' but 'I'll help you in a way that also showcases my own value.' Lucas: Exactly. She didn't do it transparently. She simply started volunteering for cross-functional projects that touched those areas. She'd say, 'I've got some capacity, I can help with the marketing analysis.' And then she'd deliver really well. Over six months, those stakeholders started mentioning her in meetings. Her visibility went up. Luna: And then the promotion conversation changed, I'm guessing. Lucas: Completely. When her manager put her name forward the next cycle, the skip-level VP said, 'Oh yeah, I've heard great things from marketing and engineering.' That alone sealed it. She got the senior product manager role. Luna: It's almost like she built a coalition of sponsors without asking for the promotion outright. And that's a really replicable strategy. Lucas: And the thing is, she never played dirty. She never gossiped, never triangulated. She just became someone who made other people successful. That's the clean version of office politics. Luna: I think a lot of listeners might worry that being strategic about relationships feels fake. But Priya's approach — focusing on genuine alignment of interests — is actually authentic. You're not pretending to care. You're finding real intersections. Lucas: Right. And you can start small. For anyone listening, think of one person whose opinion matters for your next promotion. Could be a skip-level, a peer in another department. Set up a fifteen-minute coffee chat this week. Ask them what they're working on. Find a way to help. Luna: That's a concrete first step. And over time, those small investments compound. Just like Priya's did. Lucas: Before we wrap, quick honest thing — a handful of listeners chip in monthly through Buy Me a Coffee dot com slash fexingo, and that's literally what funds making this many episodes ad-free. If the show's helped you think through a career move or decision, that same link is there. Luna: Yeah, it makes a difference. Keeps us independent. Lucas: Anyway — back to Priya. One thing she did that I think is really underrated: she started documenting her wins in a way that was visible to the stakeholders she'd helped. Not bragging, just a brief monthly email to her manager and the key people, summarizing what she'd accomplished and how it tied to their goals. Luna: That's almost like a personal newsletter. It sounds awkward but I bet it works. Lucas: It does. Because decision-makers are busy. They won't track your impact unless you make it easy. So she'd write something like, 'Just a quick update: the marketing analysis project I supported led to a 15 percent increase in campaign efficiency. Happy to share details if helpful.' Simple, not pushy. Luna: And it keeps you top of mind. So when promotion time comes, they have a mental file of your contributions. Lucas: Exactly. That's the essence of navigating politics ethically: make your value known to the people who matter, without stepping on anyone. Priya didn't badmouth her colleagues. She didn't take credit for others' work. She just made sure her work was seen. Luna: I think the biggest takeaway is that office politics isn't inherently bad. It's about how you play it. And playing it well can be a career superpower. Lucas: One more number: a study from the Journal of Vocational Behavior found that political skill was a stronger predictor of career satisfaction and salary than conscientiousness or cognitive ability. So it's not just about getting promoted — it's about enjoying your work more. Luna: That makes sense. When you feel like you have influence, you feel more engaged. And that's a win for everyone. Lucas: So for anyone feeling stuck — maybe it's not your work. Maybe it's your network. Start mapping the influence map this week. Luna: Good challenge. I might do that myself. Lucas: Let us know how it goes. That's it for this episode of The Promotion Memo.