A career power play you may need

I guarantee this is going to be the most-used career strategy over the next four years: 

Move internally. 

(Whatever you want to call it - internal mobility, a transfer, a lateral move - moving to a new function or team within your current company).

You may have written this off, driven by a desire to do something radically different or your frustration with a project tinting your perspective of your broader company.

However, as the job market tightens – moving internally is a great way to feel more fulfilled, while getting you on the right, more aligned long-term career path. 

It's the ultimate power play in this uncertain economy – taking agency over your career, and maximizing the employment and track record you already have.

I know because I did it. 

And it was a huge accelerant for my career. 

Moving internally helped me build career capital in a much more aligned domain, while catapulting me into leadership. 

Many of you know this story, but for my newer readers (hi! always so grateful you’re here), here are the spark notes: 

In 2018, three years into my consulting career, I was. not. thriving. 

I was exhausted, confused and directionless…

I had spent the past five years (since consulting recruiting started the first month of business school) building this career. Yet, I had no idea why I found it so draining, or what was going to feel better or more satisfying. 

On a whim, I started working with a career coach. 

With the guidance of my coach, I figured out that I was much more interested in how people and organizations thrived vs. how companies or social impact orgs could maximize their mission. 

Like any good MBA, I started doing informational interviews, laying the groundwork to move into some sort of people-focused role (i.e., people operations, leadership consulting). 

I was in a few interview processes, but nothing had hit until my company posted an opening for their very first Senior Manager of People + Culture. 

Whoa! 

I wasn’t sure it was a fit as the role was one to two levels too junior and I was hesitant to tell my boss that the strategy consulting manager she’d hired 15 months prior wanted to make a large pivot. 

But like I tell my clients, there are no bad information-gathering conversations (as one of my client's who loves wine says, “there are no bad grapes!”). 

So I built my nerve, prepped my pitch and told my boss I was interested. 

I shared all the introspection and learning I’d done, how I saw my career evolving towards more people and org-focused work and why I’d be able to use previous experiences and skills to be an asset for the role. 

She was curious and open, but didn’t hand me the role on a silver platter. 

That spurred several more conversations, a few interviews and then I got the job. 

And because my boss was such an excellent talent manager, she re-scoped the role and promoted me at the same time (really, don’t write off opportunities too soon!). 

Within a year, I was on the firm’s management team and a few years later, promoted to Chief of Staff and Partner. 

I share all this because we, high-achieving women, are conditioned to optimize and always go for the shiniest, brightest, biggest opportunity. We can sometimes write-off internal moves as the move of last resort. 

But in reality, they are strategic and can be career accelerants. 

Especially when it takes longer to land the opportunities you're looking for in a tight job market. 

Internal moves require drawing on the relationships and credibility you've been building for years, so you want to make sure you do it right. 

Here's how to execute an internal move successfully: 

1. Get crystal-clear on what you want to do and why, and then find those opportunities at your current company.

This advice is going to sound pretty familiar, as you need to start in the same place you do with all other career exploration. Figure out what is important to you and what you’re uniquely good at and then put those puzzle pieces together to identify the work you’re meant to do. Pay particular attention as to why your current role is no longer a good fit (you'll need that for #2). 

Once you have that clear direction, think creatively and expansively about how you could do that work at your current company. Start talking to people (yes, you're internally networking) to learn more about roles you might not even know exist (company-size dependent). There are likely several other functions and teams that you’re better suited for you - your job is to find them. 

Remember that the role you want might not exist yet at your company (especially smaller companies), so pay attention to pain points, think about how to scope a role that would solve them and build the business case for why the role you want to create would unlock meaningful value.  

2. Create a compelling narrative about why you want to make this move and start socializing it with your boss.

This is where you need to be very strategic. Remember that while you need your boss to be an advocate for you, your boss is also a human being with very human reactions and emotions. Your boss most likely thinks about you in one dimension (the role that you were hired for), doesn’t like surprises and wants good talent on their team to deliver high-quality work without capacity gaps.

You need to be mindful of all three of these when broaching the conversation about an internal move. 

You have to help your boss understand why this move makes perfect sense for you and why you’re going to excel at it (and if a new role, why there is a business need for it). 

Slowly. Over time. Through many conversations. Plant the seed of your idea and then get more specific in each conversation. 

Additionally, while your boss (hopefully) cares about your career satisfaction, they also care about having good talent on their team to deliver high-quality work, without gaps in capacity. You’ll do yourself a favor if you come up with a plan on how to back-fill your capacity and share it in those initial meetings. 

[Ok, this is where I can’t give you super-specific advice over email on how to execute an internal move, as your strategy is dependent on the size and stage of your company and it’s talent management culture. 

If you’re at an early-stage, scrappy start-up, it might be as simple as a few convos with the CEO. If you’re at F500 company, there’s probably a formal process and internal mobility programs to utilize.

If you want to evaluate if an internal move is the best strategy for you and put together a tailored execution plan, join the May Cohort of The Career Accelerator. 

Four women have used the program to evaluate internal moves or rescope their roles for more satisfaction. We will do the same for you - ensuring you have the clarity, pitch, execution plan and confidence needed!] 

3. Find a mentor who has made a similar internal move to coach you through the process.

This advice is especially important for those in massive F500 companies that have robust, yet sometimes opaque or network-driven, internal mobility processes. There is likely a formal interview process that you will have to go through, as well as informal relationship- building and influencing you'll need to do. 

The best thing you can do is to find someone who has made the internal move similar to the one you want and ask them to coach you through the process. They’ll be able to tell you the unwritten rules that won’t come with the formal interview process. 

4. Keep advocating for yourself.

This advice applies to everyone, regardless of company size. Remember that while this move feels urgent to you, it is not going to be the top priority of your boss, the talent team or leadership. You are the only one who is going to keep this at the top of the agenda. 

Remember, you’re not being pushy or annoying. You’re giving them the opportunity to satisfy and therefore retain extremely high-quality top talent. 

Plus! They're unleashing you into your ‘zone of genius' where you can do work you care deeply about while fully utilizing your strengths. You're helping them to unlock great value for the company. 

So, yes, save this email. 

Use it now or come back to it in a few months. 

Internal moves are your power move to keep creating the career you want in this uncertain economy. 

You've got this.