Latest / The Promotion Memo with Fexingo: Getting Visibility, Sponsors, and Executive Presence / Building a Career Portfolio That Gets Noticed
Transcript
- Lucas: Luna, I want to talk about something that I think is underused by most professionals, and it's not a resume, not a LinkedIn profile, not a cover letter. Luna: Okay, I'm intrigued. What is it? Lucas: A career portfolio. A curated collection of your best work, with context, results, and endorsements. Think of it like an artist's portfolio, but for your career. Luna: I've seen people do this informally, but it's not common. How did you come across this? Lucas: I was talking to a marketing manager at a mid-sized tech firm — let's call her Sarah. She was trying to get promoted to director. She had the results, but her resume just listed responsibilities. So she built a simple digital portfolio. She got the promotion three months later. Luna: That's a great case. What did she include? Lucas: She selected five to seven high-impact projects from the past two years. For each one, she wrote a short case study: the problem, her actions, the quantifiable result. She included screenshots, charts, and a testimonial from a cross-functional partner. Then she organized them in a narrative arc showing her growth. Luna: Quantifiable results are key. What kind of numbers did she use? Lucas: She had things like 'increased email click-through rate by 22 percent,' 'reduced customer acquisition cost by 15 percent,' 'generated $1.2 million in pipeline.' Numbers that any executive can immediately grasp. Luna: And the testimonials — who did she ask? Lucas: She got one from her product counterpart, one from a sales director, and one from a direct report. The idea is to show you're effective across the organization, not just in your silo. Luna: That makes sense. So how did she actually use the portfolio? Did she email it around? Lucas: She used it in her performance review. Instead of just talking, she pulled up the portfolio on her laptop and walked her manager through three projects. She also shared a link before her skip-level meeting. It gave her credibility. Luna: It's like showing, not telling. I think a lot of people struggle with visibility, and this is a concrete way to demonstrate value. Lucas: Exactly. And the best part is, once you build it, you can update it every quarter. It becomes a living document of your impact. Luna: Before we go deeper, I want to say — if you're finding this conversation useful, you know what keeps our show ad-free and independent? It's listener support. If today's episode actually helped you think about your career, consider buying us a coffee at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. We really appreciate it. Lucas: Yeah, it genuinely does keep the lights on. And we love hearing that it's making a difference. So, back to the portfolio — what are the common mistakes people make when they try this? Luna: I've seen portfolios that are just a dump of everything you've ever done. Too much noise. Lucas: That's mistake number one. Curate ruthlessly. Only include work that is relevant to the role you want. If you're aiming for a director role, don't include an intern project from five years ago. Luna: What about the format? Should it be a website, a PDF, a slide deck? Lucas: Simple and shareable. Sarah used a Google Site — it's free, searchable, and you can control permissions. A PDF works too, but a link is easier to forward. Avoid anything that requires special software or a login. Luna: And the narrative thread — you mentioned that. Why is that important? Lucas: Without a story, it's just a list of projects. Your portfolio should show progression: 'I started with individual contributor work, then led a team, then drove strategy.' It signals growth. Sarah's portfolio had sections like 'Building Foundations,' 'Leading Teams,' and 'Driving Strategy.' Luna: That's smart. So how long should the portfolio be? I'm worried about time commitment. Lucas: Start small. You can build a solid first version in two evenings. Pick three projects, write a paragraph each, add one number and one quote. That's enough to start. Then add as you go. Luna: And you mentioned sharing it in skip-level meetings. That's a great way to get visibility with senior leaders who don't see your day-to-day. Lucas: Right. A senior director once told me that the people who get promoted are the ones who make their impact obvious. A portfolio does that. It's not arrogant — it's helpful. You're saving them time by showing them exactly what you've done. Luna: One more thing — should you include failures or challenges? Or only successes? Lucas: I'd say include one project where you faced a significant setback and turned it around. It shows resilience. But frame it as a learning story, not a blame story. 'We missed the deadline, here's what I changed, and we delivered 110 percent the next quarter.' Luna: That's a good balance. So, final takeaways: start with three projects, quantify everything, get one testimonial from outside your team, and organize it in a narrative arc. Lucas: And update it every quarter. Treat it like a living document. By the time you're ready for your next promotion, you'll have a portfolio that practically writes your case for you. Luna: I love that. I'm actually going to start one myself this weekend. Lucas: That's great. Let us know how it goes. And if you're listening and want to share your experience, we'd love to hear from you. Luna: Thanks for joining us on The Promotion Memo with Fexingo. See you next time.