Leadership Portfolio - MAC086

On this podcast, I cover topics that can help you advance your career.  In simple terms, this means putting yourself in the best possible position to be considered for a promotion.  But, sometimes the next transition is from an individual to management role.  This week, I cover a technique where you can document your leadership skills as you prepare for that change.

When it comes to capturing the results of your work as an individual, I've covered several different methods.  In Episode 044 (https://www.managingacareer.com/44), I cover how to report status to various audiences showing the value that you provide in the context of your current assignments.  In Episode 039 (https://www.managingacareer.com/39), I cover the Success section of your IDP; in that section, you capture the results of your Action Plan and how you have grown from those activities.  But, these forms of documentation may not be adequate to showcase your abilities when the next role relies on completely different skills than your current role.

Many of the skills that you will need to have as a people manager are soft skills.  Using them is often not tied directly to project results but affect HOW those results are achieve.  Just documenting the results is not sufficient, so it will require a different approach.  This week, I'd like to introduce you to a Leadership Portfolio.

So, what do you capture in your Leadership Portfolio?  At the most basic level, it should document your use of soft skills and particularly how they have impacted those around you.  This is not an exhaustive list, but you should look to include instances when you:

• coached and mentored others
• navigated complex office politics
• resolved a conflict within the team
• showed executive presence
• delegated work to a more junior team member

A Leadership Portfolio isn't something that you will typically be asked to produce but just going through the process of tracking the use of soft skills will set you apart from your peers.  Beyond that, though, the Leadership Portfolio becomes your evidence that you can present to your leader when you feel you are ready to move to management.

When documenting your interactions with individuals, keep track of who you helped and your relationship to them.  Include details about how they benefitted from your leadership such as learning a new skill or completing a project or even receiving a promotion.  If you have any feedback from them such as quotes or thank-you notes, include that in your portfolio, too.

When the entry is in relation to a project, capture the dates of the instance and which soft skills you leveraged to move the project forward.  Document a summary of the event and what actions you took to address the situation.

If you decide to track your Leadership Portfolio, schedule time on your calendar every week to reflect on which soft skills you used throughout the week.  If you helped someone, be sure to follow up with them to get feedback on how the responded to that assistance.  Review which soft skills you use and which you don't.  In the coming weeks, look for opportunities to bolster those that you use least.

This week, I've given you a technique that will be a differentiator when you approach your leader about opportunities to transition to a managerial position.  It will take time…..and action….to fill your portfolio, so start your Leadership Portfolio today.

I would love to hear some stories of how this podcast has helped you in your pursuit of career advancement.  Go to the ManagingACareer.com website and leave a message via the Contact form (https://www.managingacareer.com/contact/) or click the button to leave a voicemail via your computer.  Tell me which episodes have had the biggest impact for you.  If I get enough feedback, I'll start including them in upcoming episodes.

Are you looking for a career coach? If you reach out to me via the contact form, I will arrange an introductory session where we can talk about your career goals and how I can help. If we're a good fit, we can schedule regular coaching sessions.