Leadership

Help! I'm Losing Face Time With My Boss

By Ron Brown

Updated on: January 22, 2010 / 11:21 AM EST / MoneyWatch

Dear Ron,
One of my colleagues (and rivals) has been chosen to go on an important business trip next month with my boss, and I wasn't. I'm worried that getting to spend all that time with our boss will really help to cement their relationship and hurt my own promotion prospects. What should I do?
The first thing I'd advise is to try acting from a position of strength by focusing on the relationship you already have with your boss, rather than on what your competitor is doing . You want to try to strengthen this relationship so that your boss knows you have her back in advance of and during this important trip, and reinforce the idea that she can count on you to handle whatever comes up while she's away.

So in advance of this trip, help with whatever planning you can to make her trip smoother and more productive -- e.g., reaching out to useful contacts to set up potential meetings, helping to work on her schedule, perhaps even preparing a briefing book for her. If tasks like these aren't really the kind of thing you do for your boss, don't force it, but still try to think of useful ways you can enhance your boss's trip and show that you fully support her. Secondly, during the trip, try to position yourself as your boss's go-to person to handle things while she's away. You want to be on top of everything possible on the home front, and give regular updates and feedback to your boss on what's happening and what you're doing in response.

I once had a client who was a senior manager at a big consumer products company that sent a contingent of people to the Beijing Olympics in 2008. While my client was disappointed he didn't get to go, while this group was away, a crisis broke out over one of the company's products and my client was able to play a key role in defusing the situation. He was in regular contact with a top executive on the trip about what to do, and showed that he could handle himself well under pressure and carry out what this top exec needed him to do. Meantime, my client was also able to enhance his own standing within the company by being seen as working with and on behalf of this top executive. While my client didn't get an immediate promotion out of all this, his relationship with this top exec really developed in a way that will serve him well down the line.

You should look for similar opportunities to shine while your boss is away.