Latest / The Promotion Memo with Fexingo: Getting Visibility, Sponsors, and Executive Presence / How One Employee Got Promoted by Writing a Career Memo
Transcript
- Lucas: So it’s June 2026. You’ve been in your role for two years. You know you’re delivering value — maybe you’re even overperforming. But your manager hasn’t brought up promotion. What do you do? Luna: I think a lot of people wait. They hope someone notices. Lucas: Right. And hope is not a strategy. Today we’re looking at a specific tactic that a marketing manager — let’s call her Maria — used to turn a non-conversation into a promotion in six weeks. Luna: Six weeks? That’s fast. Lucas: It is. Maria worked at a mid-sized tech company, about 800 employees. She was a mid-level marketing manager — strong execution, decent results. But she wasn’t on anyone’s shortlist for the next senior role. So she wrote a career memo. Luna: A career memo — not a performance review self-assessment, but a separate document? Lucas: Exactly. It’s a proactive, standalone document. Not triggered by a review cycle. Maria wrote it and sent it to her VP with a simple note: ‘I’d love to discuss my growth path and how I can contribute more. This memo outlines my thinking.’ No ask for a promotion explicitly — but that’s exactly what she was positioning for. Luna: So the framing matters. It’s not ‘promote me’ — it’s ‘let’s talk about how I can add more value.’ Lucas: That’s the key. The memo had three sections. First: current impact. She listed her top three accomplishments from the past year, each tied to a business metric. For example: ‘Led the launch of the account-based marketing program, which generated 15 qualified leads per quarter and $2 million in pipeline.’ Not ‘I did ABM stuff.’ Concrete numbers. Luna: Numbers make it undeniable. Lucas: Second section: future vision. She described what she would focus on in the next 12 months if given more responsibility. She specifically named two strategic initiatives her VP cared about — expanding into a new vertical and improving lead to close conversion rates. She tied her skills directly to those priorities. Luna: So she’s showing she understands the business, not just her job. Lucas: Exactly. Third section: skill gaps. This is the part most people skip. Maria acknowledged that to deliver on that future vision, she needed to grow in one or two areas — in her case, managing a larger team and understanding pricing strategy better. She proposed a plan: mentoring from a senior product manager and a six-week online course. Luna: I love that. She’s not pretending she’s perfect. She’s showing self-awareness and a growth mindset. Lucas: It disarms objections. The VP can’t say ‘you’re not ready because you lack X’ — because Maria already named X and has a plan to address it. The conversation shifts from ‘if’ to ‘how.’ Luna: What was the VP’s response? Lucas: The VP scheduled a 30-minute meeting within a week. In that meeting, they discussed the memo point by point. The VP agreed that Maria’s current impact was strong, liked her vision, and said the skill gaps were manageable. Three weeks later, she got a title change to senior marketing manager and a 15 percent salary bump. Luna: Fifteen percent — that’s significant. Lucas: It is. And the whole process took six weeks from memo to offer letter. But here’s the thing — it worked because Maria did the homework. She didn’t just ask, she built a case. Luna: I read a study from Zenger Folkman a few years ago — I think it was 2014 — that found people who document their contributions are 30 percent more likely to be considered for promotion. But I’d wager that number is higher when the documentation is as structured as Maria’s memo. Lucas: Yeah, the structure matters. One common pitfall is writing a memo that’s too long. Maria kept hers to two pages. Another mistake is being too self-promotional — listing every small win without connecting it to real business outcomes. She was selective: three accomplishments, three future priorities, two skill gaps. Luna: That’s a tight framework. It also forces the writer to be honest about what’s genuinely impressive. Lucas: Right. If you can’t articulate your impact in one or two sentences with a number, you might need to think harder about what you’ve actually accomplished. Or maybe you’re doing valuable work that’s not visible. That’s a different problem, but the memo can help surface it. Luna: What about the risk of seeming presumptuous? Sending a memo to your VP out of the blue — some managers might find that aggressive. Lucas: It depends on the culture. But Maria’s approach was low-risk because she framed it as a career development conversation, not a demand. She also had a good relationship with her direct manager, who she looped in before sending it to the VP. That’s important — don’t blindside your boss. Luna: So start with your manager, get their buy-in, then escalate if appropriate? Lucas: Exactly. In Maria’s case, her manager was supportive but hadn’t pushed for her promotion. The memo gave them something to advocate with. The manager actually forwarded it to the VP with an endorsement. Luna: That’s a dream scenario. But even if your manager isn’t that supportive, the memo gives you a tool to make your case directly if needed. Lucas: And that brings up a broader point: visibility isn’t just about being seen, it’s about being seen in the right context. A career memo puts your work into the context of company priorities. It’s a form of executive presence — showing you think strategically, not just operationally. Luna: I want to talk about the writing process itself. How long should someone spend on this? Lucas: Maria told me she spent about four hours total over a week. She started with a brain dump, then edited ruthlessly. The hardest part was the future vision section — really thinking about what she wanted to do next and how it aligned with the company’s direction. That took two hours alone. Luna: And she did that research? She looked at the company’s strategic plan? Lucas: Yes. She read the last all-hands presentation, the VP’s quarterly updates, and even asked a colleague in strategy for insights. That’s what made her vision credible — it wasn’t generic, it was specific to what her VP was trying to achieve. Luna: So the memo is really an exercise in alignment. You’re showing how your aspirations fit the company’s needs. Lucas: Exactly. And if you can’t find that alignment, that’s a signal too — maybe it’s time to look for a role elsewhere. But that’s a different episode. Luna: We’ve had a lot of listeners ask about the mechanics of writing a career memo. Could we walk through a template? Lucas: Sure. Section one: three bullets of current impact. Each bullet: a two-sentence description — what you did and the measurable result. Section two: three future priorities, each aligned to a company or team goal. Section three: one or two skill gaps with a concrete development plan. That’s it. Two pages max. Luna: I’d add — use the same language your leadership uses. If they talk about ‘revenue growth’ and ‘customer retention,’ use those terms. Don’t say ‘client stickiness’ if they say ‘retention.’ Lucas: Good call. One more thing: include a short ‘why now’ paragraph at the top. A sentence that says something like ‘With the Q3 planning cycle approaching, I want to ensure I’m positioned to take on larger responsibilities.’ It gives a sense of timing. Luna: That shows you understand the business calendar. Lucas: Right. So before we wrap, let’s talk about one common objection I hear: ‘I don’t have impressive numbers. My work is less measurable.’ What do you say to that? Luna: I’d say find a proxy. If you can’t show revenue impact, show efficiency. ‘Reduced processing time by 20 percent’ or ‘Handled 50 percent more requests without adding headcount.’ Almost any work can be quantified if you try. Lucas: And if it’s truly hard to quantify, use qualitative evidence: testimonials from stakeholders, positive feedback from clients, or recognition from peers. That still counts. Luna: The key is to tell a story of value, not just effort. Lucas: You know, as we talk about building cases for promotion, I’m reminded that producing this show takes a similar kind of effort — gathering data, structuring an argument, making it clear and useful. And a couple of dollars a month from listeners is genuinely what keeps these episodes coming. If you’ve gotten something out of our show, buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo is a simple way to support it. Luna: Yeah, it really makes a difference. We keep the podcast ad-free, and listener support is what makes that possible. Lucas: So back to the career memo. The biggest takeaway: you don’t have to wait for someone to notice you. You can write your own narrative. Maria did, and it changed her career trajectory. Luna: What’s one action listeners can take today? Lucas: Open a blank document and write down your top three accomplishments from the past 12 months — with a number attached to each. If you can’t, figure out what that number is. That’s your starting point. Luna: And if you get stuck, our next episode will cover how to measure impact when your role is less metrics-driven. So stay tuned. Lucas: For now, think about what you want your next role to look like and start building that case. Thanks for listening.