7 Ways to Move Up by Moving Over

7 Ways to Move Up by Moving Over7 Ways to Move Up by Moving OverOver is the new up in many jobs and industries. Learn how to use zur seite hin gelegen moves and other off-the-ladder opportunities for career catapults and avoid getting derailed.Are you looking for that next career challenge but unsure how to get there? Climbing the corporate ladder might not be the only way. Today more than ever, a career detour just might lead to your career destiny. At every level - including the top - professionals, managers, and executives-in-waiting commonly zigzag through several seitlich lurches before stepping up to their destination position.Why has lateral become the new way to the top? The recession is partly to blame - the hierarchy in many companies flattened and compressed during the recession, effectively eliminating rungs that were previously part of the expected climb.Because of this reality, it has become more important to think sideways. If you dont plan ahead by considering late ral rotations as part of your career development plan, you may end up stuck on your current ladder rung indefinitely, unless you find a way to take a larger-than-usual step up. Yet paradoxically, exceptional advancement is less likely if you havent taken the time to boost your experience and confidence with lateral moves.Cheryl Palmer, career coach and founder of Call to Career, suggested a helpful analogy If youre stuck in a traffic jam and it may be hours before youre able to move forward, it makes sense to change lanes and exit on a side road where you can more quickly navigate around it. Sitting in the traffic jam and fuming doesnt get you anywhere.For advice on how to effectively turn a side step into a step up, Ladders asked several career-development experts to weigh in1. Make It Make Sense. Without a strategic career path, lateral moves can become merely a merry-go-round. Joanne Cleaver, author of the new book The Career Lattice Combat Brain Drain, Improve Company Culture, a nd Attract Top Talent, suggested you must proactively plot your own career plan to make sense of diagonal and lateral moves. Your employer wont do it for you, so the first thing to know is that its up to you to pursue and land opportunities that advance your career agenda, said Cleaver.A great place to start is to envision your next up move, and then reverse-engineer the qualifications you need to make a serious run for that position. Cleaver recommended assessing your current experience and skill platzset to determine what you might need to get where you want to go.Ask yourself Am I lacking hands-on operational experience? Proven expertise in a business skill, such as client retention? A working knowledge of a relevant slice of technology? What skill set would tee up my success in that position? suggested Cleaver. By comparing the skills required by your next-step job to the skills you currently have, youll quickly see the gaps that a lateral move can fill.2. Do What Needs to Be Do ne. Your informal self-assessment will likely uncover areas where your skills could be stronger to get you to the next level. Determine specific strategic actions that will help you reach your career goals faster.If you are a project manager who wants to become a department manager, you might need two things a stronger network outside your department so that your reputation is already established with your potential new peers, and broader exposure to customers and clients so you can show that you can drive growth as well as get work accomplished, said Cleaver.In this case, she suggested considering a short-term rotation to cultivate relationships with other departments and functions, or working on an assignment that puts you and your team on a customer-facing project.3. Volunteer Strategically. It can be difficult to find time for volunteer projects in the midst of your primary career responsibilities. But strategic volunteering can be a powerful way to rapidly expand your network o f influencers and to backfill business skills, according to Cleaver.To spin community service into an opportunity for lateral rotation, Cleaver suggested joining an organizational committee whose volunteers complement- yet dont duplicate- your existing network. Look to your current skills for a logical toehold (for example, if you work in marketing, join the marketing committee).Your end game is to transition to an assignment that builds your business skills, once your credibility is established, explained Cleaver. So a marketing exec, needing operational and financial management experience, might volunteer to co-chair an annual appeal. Such assignments tee up results-driven case studies for employees to bring back to their day job, illustrating business skills that prove their qualification for general management.4. Ensure Youre Still Learning. While sometimes taking a few steps sideways - or even back - can help you move forward, not all lateral moves or career detours will take you in the direction that you ultimately want to go. The trick is knowing which will and which wont.According to Melissa Llarena of Career Outcomes Matter, it can be detrimental to take a detour if youre unlikely to learn anything new in the next position. If you are switching to gain different skills or expand your network in the company, then a sideways turn could be helpful, said Llarena. However, if you are switching into a role where you cannot leverage any of your existing skills, then you should hear an internal alarm go off. To help avoid a dead end, Roy Cohen, career coach and author of The Wall Street Professionals Survival Guide, recommended evaluating any lateral move in light of whether it will expand your skill set or neutralize what may be viewed as outdated or legacy experience.Stacey Hawley, Career Specialist at The Credo Company, noted that career detours can be beneficial if they round out your overall experience and practical education. Some detours enhance your understanding of an industry or related industries- for example, industries that are vertically integrated, said Hawley. When determining whether a career detour is beneficial, consider how you will use your newly acquired skills for subsequent roles.5. Decide for Yourself What Up Means. Part of effective career planning is knowing whats right for you. If you reach a career crossroads where a move feels wrong based on your own goals and vision- whether its sideways, up, or down- listen to yourself. Not everyones path makes sense as a vertical trajectory. We often enter the workforce thinking its a straight path to the top, says certified professional coach Laurie Battaglia. Usually its not.Workplace coach Darcy Eikenberg described working with a senior leader who knew that the next available step up on his organizations traditional ladder would force him to spend more time traveling - something he dreaded with a young son at home. But after he spent time redefining what career adv ancement really meant to him, he discovered that his current post gave him the flexibility and true advancement opportunity that he wanted.He chose to stay put, to recognize that growing in his current role would not be a detour, but sacrificing his personal values would be, said Eikenberg. Hes been happily succeeding personally and professionally ever since.6. Leverage the Lattice. Whether your lateral move comes about by design or decree, there are ways you can maximize time spent horizontally. One advantage of latticed moves is that they allow you to experience different viewpoints and perspectives.Instead of looking down my own ladder, Im going to look across the lattice of the organization, said Halley Bock, CEO and president of Fierce, Inc. Rather than asking for input from people who share my perspective and experience, the question becomes how to embrace and leverage the different vantage points, including those of different generations.Offering lateral moves as an alternati ve to straight-upward movement can be particularly important for the younger workforce, according to Bock. The opportunity to work among different teams can give variety and depth to employees work experience, said Bock. She added that Millennials bring a strong desire to share their experience and make a difference- so offering multiple avenues to learn and grow can be essential for retaining top young talent.7. Create Your Own Promotion. With the collapse of mid-management roles in many companies, an employee with 10 to 15 years of experience may suddenly find theres no next level in sight- their leaders may be in the same age range with no plans to retire or leave any time soon. Eikenberg said that in cases where you cant expect a promotion, it may be time to orchestrate your own with a few key strategiesIdentify the pain in your organization and how you are uniquely suited to help calm that pain from your current position.Build a business plan for a new role, department, or serv ice you might lead.Communicate with key players in your organization to let your intentions be known.Take your efforts as seriously as you would a new job search.It takes creativity, persistence, and confidence to create your own next step, said Eikenberg, but if youre truly hungry for advancement in a flat world, make it yourself.