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"This question originally appeared on Quora.What are the real reasons some people get promoted and others don't?I would appreciate answers based on observation and experience from people with significant management experience that take into account the political dimension of promotion, rather than [adages such as] \"work hard and do a good job.\"Answer below by Jason M. Lemkin, partner at Storm Ventures; CEO and cofounder of EchoSign (acquired by Adobe).\nI'd like to provide some insights from my experience as a vice president at a leading Fortune 500 tech company and as a reasonably successful startup CEO.\nPromotions in the Fortune 500 are indeed complicated, but let me focus instead first on performance reviews \u2014 a penultimate step to promotion, and something in my experience that materially impacts compensation.\nHere is [what I've learned]: Reviews typically go into categories of \"high,\" \"strong,\" \"good\" and \"needs to improve,\" basically in all big tech companies. (Some companies have a \"superhigh\" category, but that's rare.) In my experience, even at Adobe, even as a Fortune 500 leader with 10,000 employees, there are zero politics involved in becoming a highly ranked employee, because it's so clear who the \"highs\" are.  \nThe only real issues [in terms of] the politics is the fact that some groups have too many highly ranked candidates (often within the outperforming groups), and some have too few, which warps the curve a bit. It's actually harder to be a highly ranked employee in an outperforming group than in an underperforming group.\nHaving said all that, it was pretty surprising to me that there were really no politics involved. Now, of course, not every highly ranked performer can get promoted \u2014 but promotions are always based on results.  \n[While experiences vary], I'm going to suggest that once you strip away the emotion, and once you see how \"the sausage is really made,\" it's probably the same in any growing tech company of any scale that has solid, experienced management.\nSo now, how to get promoted? In both my big tech company experience and my startup experience, here is what I've found:\nDemonstrate successful leadership. This is what everyone is looking for \u2014 everyone. Someone to take and carry the load. As long as you have an experienced boss, they will take notice. Because what managers really need is help \u2014 real help \u2014 in accomplishing our initiatives. If you can get one of my key initiatives accomplished for me \u2014 not talked about, not analyzed, not discussed but accomplished \u2014 you are a rockstar.\nWork in a hot (or at least warm) area of the company. There's little need to promote anyone handling end-of-life products (though it does happen).\nDon't schmooze.  Just engage and be positive and respectful.  Schmoozing [can be] a turn-off.  Instead, as you demonstrate leadership, also positively engage with your peers and colleagues outside of your small group. Be as critical as needed, but always positive. Naked criticism will get you worse than nowhere; it will get you in the cellar. Your peers' feedback, even if just informal and word-of-mouth, is critical to promotion.\nDon't sell up. Yes, I know up-selling sometimes \"works\" in big companies, but it doesn't really get you promoted  \u2014 and really it [can be a sign of weakness].  Focus instead on selling down, and selling across, and on getting your colleagues to follow your ideas and insights. That's how you demonstrate true leadership.\nDress for success. I don't mean that completely literally (but yes, dress a little better than the rest, it can't hurt).  Act and carry yourself like someone who cares, someone who always goes the extra yard. Never look at the carpet or yawn. Never be late to a meeting \u2014 ever.  Always be positive, give constructive (but never destructive) feedback. Never be cocky, but be confident in what you know is correct.\nTry to be patient. Even if you do everything right, there can only be so many promotions. It may take another whole year [for your efforts to be recognized]. This isn't politics per se, but companies of any size have a finite number that can make [it to the next level].  Don't give it more than one extra year, but assume it might take one more cycle than expected.\nAsk. Ask your boss how and what it will take to get promoted. Be ready to receive some tough feedback when you ask, and be ready to grow, change and learn.\nWorking hard and doing a good job is insufficient. Again, promotion in big companies/tech companies of any scale is about leadership, and in many cases, management. You'll be paid well if you work hard and do a good job, but you probably won't get promoted all that far [on those efforts alone].\nMore Q&amp;A on Quora:\n\tWhat are the most profitable ways of making money online?\n\tHow much does a screenwriter earn?\n\tI'm about to quit my job to learn to program. What should I do?\n\n\u00A0\nHave something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.\nMashable Job Board Listings\nThe Mashable Job Board connects job seekers across the U.S. with unique career opportunities in the digital space. While we publish a wide range of job listings, we have selected a few job opportunities from the past several weeks to help get you started. Happy hunting!\n\n Digital Media Manager at WAVY/WVBT in Portsmouth, Virginia\nTravel Sales Specialists at Audley Travel in Boston, Massachusetts\nArt Director at The Designory in Long Beach, California\n\n\n"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://mashable.com/2014/07/15/factors-for-promotion/>