Latest / The Marketing Career Podcast with Fexingo: Marketing Jobs, Skills, and Career Growth / How Mid-Career Marketers Use Internal Mobility
Transcript
- Lucas: There is this statistic that keeps rattling around in my head. LinkedIn published a report last year — 2025 — that found employees who move internally are three and a half times more likely to get promoted than those who stay in the same role. Luna: Three and a half times is huge. But that doesn't match what I hear from marketers I talk to. Most of them say internal moves are slow or blocked. Lucas: That's the gap. The data says internal mobility is powerful, but the reality is it's often frustrating. And mid-career marketers are in a weird spot — they have enough experience to know they want something different but not so much seniority that they can just create their own role. Luna: You've been thinking about this because you went through it yourself at your old company, right? Lucas: Yeah. I spent two years trying to move from the content team into the strategy group at a big tech firm. It took a internal rotation program and a lot of patience. But it worked. And I think the playbook is more repeatable than people realize. Luna: Okay, so before we dive deep — one quick, honest thing. If these marketing career conversations have sparked something you've actually used, 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. Lucas: And we keep it ad-free because of that. No sponsors, no sponsored segments. It's just listener supported. So if the show's helped you, that's the place. Luna: Alright, back to internal mobility. Lucas, you mentioned a playbook. Where does a mid-career marketer even start? Lucas: First, you need to understand the landscape inside your own company. Most large employers now have what they call internal talent marketplaces. Microsoft has one, Unilever has one, even some traditional companies like JPMorgan have built internal gig platforms. Luna: Right, I've seen those. But don't they just list the same roles that are posted externally? I've never heard of anyone actually landing a move through one. Lucas: That's partly because managers are incentivized to keep good people. There's a concept called talent hoarding — a manager won't let you move because you're valuable to them, even if it's bad for your career. A 2024 study from the Corporate Executive Board found that 40 percent of internal applicants never even get a response from the hiring manager. Luna: Forty percent? That's depressing. So the system is broken. How do you get around it? Lucas: You have to bypass the system in a sense. Instead of applying cold through the portal, you need to build relationships with teams you want to join. That means informational interviews, sitting in on their meetings, volunteering for cross-functional projects. Luna: So it's networking, but inside the building. I've heard that called internal networking, but most people treat it as an afterthought. Lucas: Exactly. And the most effective tactic I've seen is job shadowing. At Unilever, they formalized a program where you can spend up to two weeks shadowing someone in another function. It's low risk, high signal. The shadowing employee learns the role, and the team gets to see your work ethic without a commitment. Luna: Has that actually led to moves? Because shadowing sounds nice, but I could see it becoming a timesink. Lucas: It does lead to moves when combined with a specific ask. After the shadowing, you say, 'I'd like to take on a short-term assignment on your team for the next quarter.' That's the second tactic — short-term assignments. They're essentially internal gigs that don't require a formal transfer. Luna: And if you do a good job on that assignment, it's basically a three-month interview. The hiring manager already knows you can do the work. Lucas: Right. And now when a full-time role opens up, you're the internal candidate with proof of performance. That's how I got my move. I did a three-month stint on the strategy team, and when a junior strategist left, they didn't even post the job externally. Luna: So the key is to create a track record before the job is even available. That makes sense. But what about companies that don't have formal programs? Say you work at a 200-person startup. Lucas: In smaller companies, internal mobility is more informal. You can literally walk over to the head of another department and say, 'I want to learn what you do. Can I take one project off your plate?' The absence of structure can actually be an advantage — there's no bureaucracy. Luna: But the flip side is that startups often need you to stay in your lane. If you're the only content marketer, who's going to write the blog posts while you're shadowing the product team? Lucas: That's a real barrier. In that case, you have to negotiate with your manager upfront. Say, 'I want to develop a new skill that will make me more valuable to the company. I propose that I spend 10 percent of my time learning from the product team for the next three months.' Most managers will accept 10 percent if it's tied to company benefit. Luna: And if they say no? Then you have a signal that this company doesn't support growth, and maybe it's time to look externally. Lucas: Exactly. Internal mobility is a two-way test. If the company blocks you, you have your answer. But if they support it, you can build a career without starting over. Luna: I want to circle back to that LinkedIn statistic — three and a half times more likely to be promoted. Does that hold for marketers specifically? Lucas: The report didn't break it out by function, but I've seen similar numbers in marketing-specific surveys. The American Marketing Association did a study in 2023 that found marketers who made an internal move within two years were promoted at double the rate of those who stayed put. Marketing is a field where breadth of experience really matters — knowing the product, the sales cycle, the customer — and internal moves give you that breadth faster. Luna: Interesting. So the internal mobility playbook isn't just about getting a different title. It's about building a more versatile skill set. Lucas: Yes. And the data backs it up. Employees who make lateral moves — not even promotions, just sideways — are more likely to get promoted later. It's like investing in a diversified portfolio of experience. Luna: Alright, so let's say I'm a mid-career marketer at a company with 5,000 employees. I've been in my role for three years. What's my first concrete step this week? Lucas: Step one: identify three teams you're curious about. Maybe product marketing, growth, or brand strategy. Step two: find someone on each team who's a few years ahead of you and ask for a 20-minute informational interview. Step three: after the chat, ask if you can shadow them for a day. That's your entry point. Luna: And if shadowing isn't possible, what's the next best thing? Lucas: Ask to be included on their email distribution list for project updates. Or volunteer to help with a low-stakes task, like proofreading a presentation. It's about getting a foot in the door. Luna: I think one thing people underestimate is the power of visibility. If the CMO or VP of marketing sees your name on a cross-functional project, that creates a mental bookmark. Six months later when a role opens, they remember you. Lucas: Exactly. And internal mobility is ultimately about building a reputation inside the company. The most successful internal movers I've seen are the ones who are known for being curious, helpful, and reliable — not just the ones who apply for every opening. Luna: Curious, helpful, reliable. That's a good internal brand. And it can be built without ever filling out an official application. Lucas: Right. One last thing — don't forget to document your wins. When you do that short-term assignment or shadowing, keep a running list of what you accomplished. When the internal job posting finally appears, you'll have concrete examples to put in your application. Luna: That's practical. So the episode's big takeaway: internal mobility is real, it works, but you have to engineer it yourself. The company won't do it for you. Lucas: Exactly. And if you start today, you could be in a new role by the end of the year without ever updating your LinkedIn profile. Luna: I like that. And if you want to share your own internal mobility story, we're always around. Thanks for listening.