Five practices for professional growth within your organization 

When work starts to feel mundane or job frustrations arise, it can be tempting to jump ship. While there are circumstances when leaving an organization is the only viable option for nonprofit professionals, it’s worth considering internal growth opportunities. January is a great time to look to the year ahead and commit to new goals. Professional growth can include developing new skills, taking on stretch assignments, learning from peers, and advocating for promotions. Next time you’re tempted to troll jobs on LinkedIn, you might pause to consider these five practices for internal professional growth. 

1. Strive for visibility  

Visibility is important at every level in an organization. Whether you’re the administrative assistant or the executive director, people should know who you are. Visibility used to be easy. Just show up to the office every day, and more likely than not, colleagues would know your name and what you’ve been up to at work.  

The shift to remote work in recent years presents unique challenges to ensuring visibility. Instead of catching up at the watercooler or over a cup of coffee, many of us are relegated to checking in via Slack or email. There isn’t a world where technology will ever be as connective as in-person interactions. That’s why organizations spend thousands of dollars on all-staff retreats, team-building activities, and happy hours. In lieu of those opportunities, it’s even more important to be intentional about visibility.  

Building visibility for professional growth is a skill that requires thoughtfulness. It helps ensure colleagues know who you are, what you’re working on, and what strengths you contribute to the organization. Visibility helps open doors to development opportunities. For example, if the executive team is discussing which employees to include in a new working group or leadership opportunity, it’s helpful if they’re aware of who you are. 

Visibility tips: 

• Keep your camera on in virtual meetings 

• Show up to meetings on time and try not to leave early 

• Speak up with questions, observations, or insights that can add value 

• Share updates on your work and accomplishments 

• Prioritize in-person meetings and face time with colleagues whenever possible 

2. Build relationships 

Visibility will make building relationships easier. Once folks know who you are, it’s less awkward to ask for advice, collaborate on a project, or offer feedback. Relationships are the foundation for job satisfaction. Without strong relationships, you’re much more likely to be frustrated at work.  

Relationship tips: 

• Collaborate with colleagues across the organization—for example, through special projects, committees, volunteer events, or employee resource groups 

• Participate in mentorship or other engagement programs that help employees connect and learn from one another 

• Go one question beyond the generic “How are you?” 

• Invite colleagues to lunch, coffee, or a walking meeting 

3. Seek out feedback 

Genuine professional relationships make asking for feedback easier. A key to professional growth is self-awareness, but we all have blind spots. Feeback can help identify strengths, weaknesses, and areas for improvement. 

Feedback tips: 

• Take advantage of opportunities to get feedback via 360-degree reviews (typically gathered from direct reports, peers, and leadership), performance evaluations, and ongoing conversations with your manager 

• Ask trusted colleagues for informal feedback 

• Offer feedback in return (it goes both ways) 

• Save the feedback you receive, both positive and constructive, where you can easily refer to it 

4. Take advantage of learning opportunities 

Feedback from your manager, trusted colleagues, and mentors helps clarify areas for improvement. Once you’re clear on what skills to develop, set specific goals and seek out learning opportunities to achieve them. Depending on your learning style and preferences, learning opportunities can range from reading articles and books to attending workshops, presenting at conferences, volunteering for special projects, coordinating volunteer events, writing articles, or joining committees. 

Learning tips:  

• Make sure you’re aware of the resources available at your organization, which could include internal programs; organizational memberships; subscriptions to learning platforms like Coursera, Udemy, or LinkedIn Learning; and professional development funds to pay for courses 

• Ask colleagues about the learning resources they’ve found most helpful 

• Leverage free resources like Candid’s eBook collection and Candid Learning for webinars, in-person training, and self-paced on-demand trainings 

5. Ask for what you want 

Managers aren’t mind readers. If you’re not willing to advocate for yourself and what you’re striving for, it’s unlikely others will. Conversations about promotions often include senior leadership. Building visibility and positive relationships with key stakeholders will help secure opportunities for professional growth. 

Asking tips:  

• Practice the conversation with a trusted colleague  

• Be specific about how you’ve worked to grow and what you’re hoping to achieve 

• Be willing to compromise if you can’t get exactly what you want 

With visibility across the organization, strong relationships, clarity on your strengths and weaknesses, and continued learning, you’ll be well positioned for ongoing professional growth. Keep in mind that growth isn’t always a title promotion. It could include new opportunities to contribute, build professional skills, serve on committees, or provide thought leadership. Whatever the opportunities may be, they should lead to professional growth and job satisfaction. If they don’t, it might be time to start looking for a new job. 

What helpful advice or learning opportunities for nonprofit professionals have you come across in your career? Share them in the comments below. 

Photo credit: Martin-Dm via Getty Images