Latest / The Promotion Memo with Fexingo: Getting Visibility, Sponsors, and Executive Presence / How One Employee Got Promoted by Creating a Sponsorship Roadmap
Transcript
- Lucas: So there's this idea we hear all the time in career advice: you need a sponsor. Find a senior person who'll go to bat for you. And that advice is technically correct, but it's also kind of useless on its own. Luna: Right — it's like saying 'you need to eat healthier.' Great, but what do I actually do at the grocery store? Lucas: Exactly. So today I want to walk through what one person actually did. A senior analyst at a large financial services firm — let's call it a top-ten bank by assets. She wanted to move up to VP, and she knew she needed sponsorship. But instead of just hoping to click with the right person, she built something she called a sponsorship roadmap. Luna: A sponsorship roadmap — so a literal document? Lucas: Yes — a one-page plan. And if today was worth a coffee to you, that's the link — buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. It helps us keep the show ad-free. Anyway, back to the roadmap. She started by asking herself three questions: Who are the people whose support would actually change the outcome of my promotion? What exactly do I need from each of them? And how do I build that relationship in a way that doesn't feel transactional? Luna: I love that she forced herself to answer 'what exactly do I need.' Because the vague ask — 'will you sponsor me?' — is so hard for a senior leader to say yes to. Lucas: Right. So she mapped it on a 3x3 grid. One axis was the type of support: influence, advocacy, access. The other axis was the person: she listed three potential sponsors. For each cell, she wrote one concrete action. For example, with the head of her division — whom she wanted for advocacy — the action was: 'ask him to mention my name in the VP committee meeting when they discuss succession.' Luna: That's so specific. I can imagine him thinking, 'oh, she's thought about this.' Which probably makes him more likely to actually do it. Lucas: Exactly. And she timed it. She planned a six-month window. Month one and two: building credibility by delivering visible work. Month three and four: having structured conversations where she shared her career goals and asked for advice — not for sponsorship directly. Month five and six: making the specific asks. Luna: So she front-loaded the relationship with value before asking for anything. That sounds obvious, but I bet most people skip it. Lucas: Most people do. They meet a senior leader once and then email them: 'can you be my sponsor?' That almost never works. This analyst, instead, identified a project the division head cared about — a regulatory reporting overhaul — and she volunteered to lead a piece of it. That gave her a reason to interact with him naturally for months. Luna: So the roadmap wasn't just a document — it was a system for building the relationship step by step. Lucas: Exactly. And she tracked progress. Every two weeks she'd review: did I complete the action? If no, what's the blocker? She treated it like a project plan. And the result was she got promoted to VP in nine months — three months ahead of her own target. Luna: That's impressive, but I have to ask: doesn't this feel a bit calculated? Like, you're mapping out relationships like they're a supply chain? Lucas: It's a fair question. And I think the key is the intent. She wasn't pretending to be friends with these people. She genuinely respected them and wanted to learn from them. The roadmap was just a way to be intentional about something that's often left to luck. If you're an introvert, or you're from a background where you weren't taught to network, this kind of structure can be really empowering. Luna: That's a good point. Structure can be a leveller. And I think the authenticity comes from the fact that she did deliver real value first — she wasn't just asking. Lucas: Exactly. And she was transparent about her ambitions. When she had the career conversation in month three, she said: 'My goal is to be considered for VP in the next cycle. I'm not asking you to guarantee anything — I want to know what gaps you see.' That honesty builds trust. Luna: So for someone listening who wants to try this, what's the first step? Should they literally draw a 3x3 grid? Lucas: I would start with the three questions she asked herself. Who are three people whose sponsorship would materially change your trajectory? It could be your boss's boss, a peer who's well-respected, someone in a different function. Then for each, write down one specific thing they could do for you — not 'support me,' but 'mention my name in the operations review' or 'introduce me to the head of product.' Luna: And then build a timeline for how you'll create value for them first. Because if you're not solving a problem they have, why would they invest in you? Lucas: Right. And this doesn't have to be huge. It could be as simple as: 'I noticed you're presenting on X next week — I've pulled together some data that might help.' That's a low-effort way to demonstrate competence and usefulness. Luna: I like that. It's a concrete starting point. I think the biggest barrier for most people is just the fear of seeming pushy. But this approach — start with value, be specific, be patient — that feels respectful. Lucas: Exactly. And the roadmap gives you a reason to follow up without it being awkward. You can say: 'I'm working on my sponsorship roadmap and I wanted to check in on that action item we discussed.' That's professional, not weird. Luna: So let's say someone builds their roadmap and starts executing. How do they know if it's working? What's the signal? Lucas: The biggest signal is if a senior person starts proactively advocating for you without you asking. If you hear from a colleague that your sponsor mentioned you in a meeting as a candidate for a project — that's the green light. The other signal is if they start giving you stretch assignments that increase your visibility. Luna: And if after a few months nothing's happening? Then you might need to adjust — maybe you picked the wrong person, or your ask wasn't clear enough. Lucas: Right. And that's why the roadmap is useful — it gives you a review mechanism. At the two-month mark, if you haven't had a single meaningful interaction with one of your targets, you know you need to change your approach. Luna: One thing I'm wondering: did she share the roadmap with her sponsors? Or was it just for her own planning? Lucas: She didn't share the whole document — that would be too on the nose. But she did share elements of it. For example, during the career conversation, she showed the division head a one-page summary of her accomplishments and her goals. That was derived from the roadmap. So the thinking behind it was visible, but the tool itself was private. Luna: That's smart. You get the benefit of structure without making the other person feel like a checkbox. Lucas: Exactly. And I think that's the balance we're all trying to strike — being intentional without being robotic. A sponsorship roadmap is just a way to take something vague and make it real. Luna: Alright, I'm sold. I might actually try this. For anyone else listening, the key takeaways: identify three potential sponsors, define one specific ask for each, create a timeline for delivering value first, and review your progress every two weeks. Lucas: That's the formula. And if you want to hear more stories like this — real people, real promotions, real tactics — we've got 84 episodes in the archive. This one was number 85. Thanks for listening.