The adage “out of sight, out of mind” can be worrisome if you’re working remotely. To snag that promotion or be tapped for an exciting new project, you’ve got to be top of mind for your boss. Worklife Ventures, a VC firm, recently surveyed more than 550 tech workers and asked, “What actions are you taking to stand out?”
· 40% are deliberately seeking out one-on-one time with their manager
· 31% are sending more frequent updates, just so they aren’t overlooked
· 44% said they’re “making their voices heard” in company meetings
· 32% are learning new skills outside of work that they can bring to work
“With remote work, if you do your job well, it’s easy to go unnoticed,” says Brianne Kimmel, founder and managing director of Worklife Ventures. “Only problems require interaction with your supervisors—otherwise they’re more than happy for you to turn your work in and not speak with you.”
Instead of hoping you get noticed, Kimmel suggests taking the reins and doing these four things:
1. Mirror your manager’s working hours and style
You can probably tell if your boss is an early bird or night owl by paying attention to when they send emails or post Slack messages. Make sure you have a lot of time overlap for getting their feedback and facetime on Zoom calls by adopting the same schedule, suggests Kimmel. If you aren’t sure, ask to see your manager’s calendar.
“A calendar is the source of truth,” says Kimmel. “See how much time is blocked off for doing meaningful, deep thinking. What matters most when it comes to promotion time is your contribution to that company. Mirroring how your boss works ultimately is going to set you up for success at that particular company.”
2. Ask to attend more meetings
One way to learn and gain a greater presence is to attend more meetings even when you aren’t even needed, says Kimmel.
“Ask your boss, ‘Are there meetings I can attend in your place to meet more people at the company?’” she suggests. “Folks that are more junior on a team that are not working from an office don’t have the ability to meet their boss’s peers or their boss’s boss.”
Exposure to peers at a higher level, or exposure to even your boss’s boss, on a more frequent basis is what will help keep you top of mind when there’s a step-up or a lateral movement, which could really change the trajectory of your career.
3. Watch your company’s job board
There may be bigger roles and new opportunities that you can step into easily as a current employee. Kimmel recommends checking your company’s job board once or twice a week.
“Look for upward mobility or lateral moves where you can broaden your experience and become a more holistic leader and contributor to that company,” says Kimmel. “For example, a lot of tech companies are going through layoffs, and we believe there are one or two more rounds to come. Becoming a student of your company is a valuable skill.”
You may be on the marketing team and see a job post to move to the strategy team. “Employers are looking for people who can share expertise cross functionally,” says Kimmel. “We find workers can climb the corporate ladder faster by switching to a different team or by stepping into a bigger role, based on what they’ve observed from the job board.”
4. Bring new skills to work
Be willing to expand your skill set outside of work, and if you have expertise that could be valuable to coworkers, be willing to share it, says Kimmel.
“I worked at Zendesk for a number of years and what I appreciated about the culture was that it encouraged life outside of work,” says Kimmel. “A guy on my team taught an improv class every week, and a woman on my team was a freelance cartoonist for The New Yorker. And I think having those types of activities and interests outside of work brings a lot of culture and value to the team directly.”
Kimmel encourages employees to bring their whole selves and all their interests to work as a way to help form common bonds.
“Getting involved in Employee Resource Groups is always a nice option as well,” she says. “Using your hobbies and interests outside of work to form close bonds with people at your company is awesome. It can also give you a reason to talk to other people across the company—maybe even your boss’s boss—by building meaningful relationships.”
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