Are you working in a place where there is no clear path for advancement? Or worse, because of who you are there never was a path at all for advancement? Part of the "broken ladder" problem starts with diversity in the places we work. This is part of the problem you must be aware of.

But what if nothing changes, how do you get ahead? We suggest a path to follow with some tactics to take. We also provide some guidance for leaders in organizations.
 

Broken Ladder

There is a “broken rung” in the ladder to success, and fixing it is key to women's achieving parity in the workplace, (alltogether.swe.org) according to the McKinsey & Company “Women in the Workplace 2019” report (womenintheworkplace.com)

Black women and women with disabilities face the most barriers in the workplace. 46% of women with disabilities and 44% of black women say they don't have equal opportunities for growth and development. (novoresume.com)

Yes, the data is in and "we have a problem". A focus on diversity in leadership is a start. 
 

Diversity

Overall, the share of women in the C-suite has climbed to 21% from 17% four years ago. “We've seen that if companies really put their minds to it, they can bring about change that matters,” Ms. Thomas says (wsj.com)

Yikes, when we read 1% per year as bringing about change, we know we must dig deeper.

 “It's not ‘do one thing and everything will fall into place,'” said Dr. Pace, Ed.D., vice president and global chief diversity and inclusion officer at MetLife.  (alltogether.swe.org) 

Okay, so the word is getting out that more needs to be done and there is no silver bullet to creating diversity and inclusion.
 

Diversity = Profitability

Regardless of who you are, you should strive to work for a company which is profitable (not-for-profits also fit into this framework too). Profitable companies provide more opportunities for movement. When diversity provides more profitability, you should be along with all the others in the company to push for more diversity. 

"According to the McKinsey study “ Why Diversity Matters ,” companies in the top quartile for gender-diverse executive suites were 15% more likely to generate above-average profitability compared to the bottom quartile of companies whose executive teams were predominantly white and male. When it comes to staffing, companies that have higher degrees of racially and ethnically diverse employees have a 35% performance advantage over companies relying on a "culture fit" that tends to trend white and monocultural." (marketwatch.com)
 

How do you get ahead?

Okay, we know problems exist, but what if there are no signs of change?  How do you get ahead? How do you climb the corporate ladder?

“I believe that 90% of employees are executors, but it is the other 10% who initiate, who do things that they are not asked to do, who move up the ladder the quickest,” Teach says. (forbes.com)

Based on my experience and what research has told me, you do have to do things. I suggest these three tactical areas to move you forward and they fall into what I call K.A.N.

• Learn and increase your Knowledge
• Ask for more responsibility
• Expand and Strengthen your Network
   

Knowledge

"A recent study by CareerBuilder.com shows that a whopping 58 percent of managers said they didn't receive any management training." (forbes.com)

You can't count on being given the knowledge you need from the company you are working for. It is time for you to get on the fun lifelong learning plan and you can start with what your company does.  Strive to understand what other departments are doing and how they work.  Talk with people about their roles and what they do for the company.  Read the marketing material put out from your company.  Look outside your company to the competitors with your company. What are they doing?  What new trend or technology is entering corporations in general which could be used by your company? The overall point here is to become inquisitive and learn.

After you gain some new insights about your company and the business world it participates in, you can highlight the things you don't really know that much about. Take these topic areas and dig in.  Learn all that you can about them. Find good, trusted sources of information and learn.  Online courses, your local library, this big thing called the internet... 

• Set up a Google alert for keywords related to your industry.
• Use Twitter's news hashtags to get articles about your industry.
• Send out articles to your team with your thoughts and anticipate questions.

Soon when that big project comes up or when you see areas within your corporation which could benefit from something you learned, this will be your turning point.  This is time to jump in and take action by asking to assist.
 

Ask

If you're willing to be persistent, eventually you'll get the chance. You don’t need anyone telling you what to do; figure out what you want to do yourself. To succeed at whatever you're doing, you need to be proactive. Ask for responsibility when you see opportunities.

But wait! 

You must ask for the specific responsibility you want which you feel can enhance your knowledge and career. It is a mistake to simply ask, "I want more to do, what can you give me?".  If you ask this way you may simply just end up with more work which doesn't move you forward.

Remember to utilize your new knowledge with the new responsibility to deliver outstanding results which will get noticed. This is your opportunity space.
 

Network

Networking with people inside and outside of your company is one of the most important things you can do to get ahead and climb the corporate ladder.

35% of surveyed professional say that a casual conversation on LinkedIn Messaging has led to a new opportunity. (thebalancecareers.com)

"Networking is about sharing, not taking. It is about forming trust and helping one another toward goals. Regularly engaging with your contacts and finding opportunities to assist them helps to strengthen the relationship. By doing this, you sow the seeds for reciprocal assistance when you need help to achieve your goals.

Remember you are not just gaining exposure to the people in the room, you are building connections with their network too. If someone they know has a need that matches your business, if you have made an impression, you will likely get a referral." (michaelpage.com.au)
 

Still not getting ahead? 

You may have to take your new knowledge gained, responsible seeking, and network connected self to another corporation!

79% of business and HR executives world-wide admitted to having serious issues with retention and employee engagement. (mentorresources.com)

Perhaps someone moved or removed the broken corporate ladder in these 79% of businesses!
 

For the Leaders

You play a big role in this employee advancement. As seen, along with working on profitability you must work on your strategy for implementing diversity within your organization.  Build pathways for employees to increase the knowledge base, taking on new responsibilities and opportunities to network in and outside of your company. In other words, build K.A.N into your corporation and enable your employees and your corporation to get ahead.

As you support K.A.N. also remember to celebrate every employee move and achievement within your corporation. Celebrations are beacons for employees to follow and acknowledgement of the commitments being made to building a strong team and corporate culture.

Don't forget if there is no way for employees to get ahead or climb the corporate ladder they may just leave!