Forget a Mentor, Find a Sponsor

Key Concepts

Sponsorship, defined

“A sponsor, as we shall explore, is also someone who takes an interest in you and your career, but not out of altruism or like-mindedness. A sponsor sees furthering your career as an important investment in his or her own career, organization, or vision.” (p. 20)

“A sponsor is a senior leader who, at minimum:

• Believes in me and goes out on a limb on my behalf

• Advocates for my next promotion

• Provides “air cover” so I can take risks

“And comes through on at least two of the following fronts:

• Expands my perception of what I can do

• Makes connections to senior leaders

• Promotes my visibility

• Provides stretch opportunities

• Gives advice on “presentation of self”

• Makes connections to clients/customers

• Gives honest/critical feedback on skill gaps” (p. 30)

Protégés return the investment by delivering for the sponsor

“What protégés do, in a word, is deliver. As Maria intuited early in her career, they come through with both stellar performance and die-hard loyalty. They also deliver a distinct personal brand or unique skill set, a critical finding of the research. Star performers are very likely to attract sponsors, and loyal performers are very likely to keep them. But if they fail to distinguish themselves, these loyal performers run the risk of becoming permanent seconds, lieutenants who never make captain. To position themselves for the top job, protégés must therefore contribute something the leader prizes but may intrinsically lack: gender smarts or cultural fluency on a team that lacks diversity; quantitative skills or technical savvy on a team that is deficient in hard expertise; people skills on a team that’s bristling with eggheads and nerds. You could provide unique insight into a target market. You could have access to a sought-after circle of investors or stakeholders. Whatever you bring, it must burnish the sponsor’s personal brand across the organization even as it distinguishes you from the crowd, delivering you your dream job and not one as second-in-command.” (p. 37)

Sponsors invest in protégés because it helps their own career

“Sponsorship, done right, is transactional. It’s an implicit or even explicit strategic alliance, a long-range quid pro quo. But provided you’re giving as good as you’re getting, there’s nothing about this dynamic that warrants distaste. Sponsorship isn’t favoritism or politics; it doesn’t rig the game.” (p. 20)

“What this means is that the nature of your support relationships is up to you. You’ll get back what you put in. If you’re a high-potential or strong performer, you’ll attract the interest of your superiors, but whether that interest translates into mentorship or sponsorship is a function of your investment. You might be tapped for development, but you’re not going to be given a ride on the coattails of anyone who doesn’t see you pulling your weight (and then some). Mentors may pick you, but you pick your sponsors by committing yourself to their best interests.” (p. 42)

“Because make no mistake: Sponsors, unlike mentors, really need you. They need your support and skills. They need you to build their bench strength and complement their expertise. They need you to help them realize their vision and secure their legacy. You advance their careers, surprising as that might seem. There’s a protégé effect akin to the sponsor effect in terms of career traction for leaders. White male leaders with a posse of protégés are 11 percent more satisfied with their own rate of advancement than leaders who haven’t invested in up-and-comers. Leaders of color who’ve developed young talent are overall 24 percent more satisfied with their career progress than those who haven’t built that base of support.” (p. 42)

Picking potential sponsors

“Start by identifying would-be sponsors among your supporters. Good bets will be leaders who (1) are already aware of your skills and strengths, (2) stand to benefit from your help, and (3) have the clout to move you toward your goal, whatever that may be.” (p. 76)

“When scanning your horizon for would-be sponsors (yes, you’ll need more than one), bear in mind that the best candidates are very likely not going to be people with whom you’d want to share your innermost secrets. They may not even be leaders you hugely admire. Rather, the best candidates are people in a position to get you where you’re keen on going—people inside or outside your company who have clout in the circle you aspire to join or influence in the community you’re eager to embrace.” (p. 79)

“This profound mismatch helps explain why so many women and people of color fail to find the real deal: sponsors who can deliver. They align themselves with people whom they trust and like or who, they believe, trust and like them. CTI survey data affirm this: women and multicultural professionals look for someone “whose leadership style I admire” (with 56 percent of women and 52 percent of multicultural professionals in accord). As a result, they’re less inclined, at critical stages, to align their interests with people who can turbocharge their prospects and forge strategic alliances.” (p. 81)

The 2 + 1 Rule

“The solution, of course, is to cultivate more than one sponsor, at least in a medium-sized to large firm. In organizations with fewer than ten people, you’re probably best served by having one or two sponsors outside the firm as well as in it, in the same industry. The ideal life raft in larger organizations, CTI research shows, consists of three sponsors: two within your organization—one in your line of sight and one in a different department or division—and one outside your firm. The “2 + 1 Rule,” as we call it, holds true for every career stage, from entry level to executive.” (p. 90)

“For that external sponsor, you need to cultivate vibrant networks outside work. Join a philanthropic cause, get on a nonprofit board, take a leadership role in your church or synagogue, or head up your alumni chapter, all with a view to gaining visibility in a larger community by demonstrating commitment and showcasing your unique skills or experience.” (p. 92)

The protege needs to bring unique value to the sponsor

“To home in on your brand or distinctive value, revisit your performance reviews, if you have them, or the self-assessment you conducted in chapter 3, and look at where you consistently excel. Better yet, ask your mentor for his or her insights on your distinct value add, or consult with your personal board of directors. Solicit the feedback of friends and family: they may be able to reveal to you the basis on which to build your brand.” (p. 121)

“Consider, finally, that what brands you as an outsider to the flock—even painfully so—might constitute your most distinctive edge, your most valuable currency.” (p. 122)

Sponsors are important because they give direct, sometimes harsh feedback

“That’s where a sponsor comes in. Sponsors, unlike mentors, will level with you, giving you unvarnished feedback on your executive presence because you’re walking around with their brand on. The degree to which you’re seen as having what it takes directly impinges on your sponsor’s reputation as a leader. But either because most women and people of color lack sponsors, or because their sponsors aren’t living up to their duties, they’re not getting this critical feedback. That was the disturbing finding of CTI’s research.” (p. 179)

Quotables

“Don’t get me wrong: mentors matter. You absolutely need them. But they’re not your ticket to the top. Mentors give, whereas sponsors invest.” (p. 19)

“One interviewee compared her sponsor strategy to her bond portfolio. ‘You want it diversified and you want to keep adding to it, or it won’t be an adequate hedge,’ she counsels.” (p. 90)

“Sponsors go out on a limb for someone who demonstrates she’s going to go the extra mile. Sponsors advocate for someone who shows he’ll continue to deliver strong results, not just for the sponsor but for the firm. Sponsors protect someone who recognizes that the sponsor’s reputation is at stake. Be that someone: signal you’ll be a contributor. Show you’ll overdeliver. Deliver exceptional performance and prove yourself eminently trustworthy.” (p. 101)

“Save ‘yes’ for your sponsor. One biotech recruiter I interviewed observed, ‘Be selective about whom you say yes to: you can’t say yes to everybody or you’ll be spread too thin to ace any one assignment.’ Consider, too, how this particular yes, said to this particular person, will advance your career. It really comes down to being strategic about who you’re cultivating as a sponsor. (p. 134)

“In this section, I’m going to delve deep into three career pitfalls that other coaches won’t poke with a ten-foot pole. The fact that no one talks about them is what keeps straight white men in power and the rest of us scratching at the door. First, for women, there’s the ubiquitous and ever-threatening hazard of an illicit affair: sex with a superior or even the suspicion of it can take you out of the race. Then, if you’re a person of color, there’s the issue of distrust: if you allow racial divides to cut you off from potential sponsors, your fear of career-stunting bias will become a self-fulfilling prophecy. And for both women and minorities, there’s the elusive but essential code of executive presence: fail to crack it and you’ll lose your way altogether.” (p. 136)