Print or copy this page — or open a blank doc alongside it. For each question, write a brief note (2–3 sentences) explaining your answer. Scores without reasoning are just guesses.

Use the 1–4 scale for each question: 1 = Not yet / needs significant work · 2 = Developing / some evidence · 3 = Solid / consistent evidence · 4 = Strong / undeniable evidence

Be the skeptic, not the advocate. Read each question as if a skeptical committee member is asking it. If you'd struggle to answer convincingly in a room full of strangers, score it lower.

Share your results with your manager — not the raw scores, but your reflections on the gaps. This turns the assessment into a development conversation, not a monologue.

A-1 · Scope of work

In the past 6 months, have you taken on work that is explicitly at the scope of the next level — not just more volume of your current work?

Score 4 if: You can name 2–3 specific projects or responsibilities that clearly belong to the role above yours. Score 1 if: Your work has stayed within your defined role, even if done very well.

A-2 · Independent judgment

Do you make significant decisions within your domain without needing your manager's input — and do those decisions hold up?

Score 4 if: Your manager describes you as "low-maintenance" and trusts your calls. Score 1 if: You frequently check in before making decisions your peers at the next level would make independently.

A-3 · Consistency over time

Has your performance at the next level been consistent for at least 2–3 quarters — not a single strong project or a recent improvement?

Score 4 if: You can point to a clear pattern across multiple quarters. Score 1 if: Your strongest evidence is from the last 3 months only.

A-4 · Problem identification

In the past year, have you identified and acted on a significant problem or opportunity that nobody assigned to you?

Score 4 if: You can name a specific initiative you originated. Score 1 if: All your work has been assigned by your manager or defined by your role.

A-5 · Handling ambiguity

When given an unclear or poorly-defined task, do you structure it and move forward without requiring your manager to resolve the ambiguity for you?

Score 4 if: You're known as someone who "figures it out." Score 1 if: Ambiguous tasks tend to stall until you get more direction.

B-1 · Impact log

Do you maintain an ongoing record of your accomplishments, with specific outcomes and business context — not just a list of tasks completed?

Score 4 if: You can pull up a document right now with 5+ documented wins from the past 6 months, each with measurable outcomes. Score 1 if: You'd have to reconstruct your impact from memory.

B-2 · Business framing

Can you connect your contributions directly to outcomes the business cares about — revenue, efficiency, quality, retention, risk reduction — rather than activity metrics?

Score 4 if: Every major contribution has a "so what?" framed in business terms. Score 1 if: Your accomplishments are described in terms of tasks ("I managed the X project") rather than outcomes ("the X project reduced onboarding time by 30%").

B-3 · Manager awareness

Is your manager aware of your top 5 contributions from the past 6 months in specific, outcome-oriented terms — not just a general sense that you're doing well?

Score 4 if: You regularly brief your manager on impact in your 1:1s and they could narrate your contributions if asked right now. Score 1 if: You let your work speak for itself and rarely frame impact explicitly.

B-4 · Artifacts and deliverables

Have you produced tangible artifacts — documents, frameworks, analyses, tools, processes — that others use and that can be pointed to as concrete evidence of your work?

Score 4 if: You can link to 2+ artifacts that other teams or people actively use. Score 1 if: Your work exists primarily in meetings and conversations rather than persistent, referenceable outputs.

B-5 · External praise captured

Do you have documented praise from stakeholders, clients, or cross-functional partners — emails, Slack messages, or verbal endorsements you've recorded — that your manager can reference?

Score 4 if: You have a folder of external praise with at least 3 specific endorsements from this year. Score 1 if: Positive feedback arrives and you mentally note it, then forget it.

C-1 · Manager as advocate

If asked right now, could your manager give a specific, compelling 3-minute case for your promotion — with evidence, not just enthusiasm?

Score 4 if: You've explicitly discussed your promotion goals with your manager, shared your impact evidence, and they've confirmed they're ready to advocate. Score 1 if: Your manager generally likes your work but you haven't had an explicit promotion conversation.

C-2 · Senior sponsor

Do you have at least one senior leader (above your manager) who knows your work, respects your judgment, and would speak positively about you in a calibration room?

Score 4 if: You can name a specific person who has actively advocated for you. Score 1 if: Senior leaders in your organization mostly don't know who you are.

C-3 · Cross-functional reputation

Do managers from teams other than yours know your work well enough to say something specific and positive about it in a calibration meeting?

Score 4 if: At least 2 managers from other teams have direct experience of your work and think highly of it. Score 1 if: Your reputation is confined to your own team and manager.

C-4 · Developing others

Have you actively invested in the growth of one or more colleagues this year — through mentorship, feedback, knowledge sharing, or creating opportunities for them?

Score 4 if: You can point to a specific person who is measurably more effective because of your investment. Score 1 if: You help when asked but don't proactively develop anyone.

C-5 · No significant friction

Is there any ongoing interpersonal tension, reputation concern, or behavioral feedback that a skeptic might raise in a calibration meeting?

Score 4 if: You're not aware of any significant friction, and your manager has never flagged a concern about how you work with others. Score 1 if: You know there's a colleague or stakeholder relationship that's strained and unresolved.

D-1 · Explicit alignment

Have you explicitly told your manager you're targeting a promotion in this cycle — and do they know the specific criteria you're working against?

Score 4 if: You've had the "I'm targeting a promotion and here are the criteria I understand I need to meet" conversation in the last 3 months. Score 1 if: You haven't explicitly raised your promotion timeline.

D-2 · Budget and headcount

Is your company in a period where promotions are actually happening — no hiring freeze, no reorg, no cost-cutting that's likely to lock the budget?

Score 4 if: Promotions have happened in your org in the last cycle and the business context hasn't changed significantly. Score 1 if: You're in a freeze, a reorg, or a cost-cutting period with no clear end date.

D-3 · Time in level

Have you been at your current level long enough to be considered a reasonable candidate — typically 18 months minimum, often 2–3 years at more senior levels?

Score 4 if: You're past the typical minimum tenure and your time in level is in line with peers who have been promoted. Score 1 if: You've been in the role less than 12 months.

D-4 · Manager stability

Has your manager been in their role long enough to have built context about your work — and do they have the organizational standing to advocate effectively?

Score 4 if: Your manager has been your manager for 6+ months, knows your work deeply, and is well-regarded in the leadership team. Score 1 if: Your manager is new, has low organizational capital, or doesn't seem well-positioned to advocate.

D-5 · Written criteria

Do you have the promotion criteria in writing — agreed upon with your manager — so you're both evaluating you against the same standard?

Score 4 if: You have a written document (an email summary, a shared doc, your company's leveling rubric) with specific criteria your manager has confirmed. Score 1 if: The criteria are vague, verbal, or you're not sure what you'd actually need to do to get promoted.

The foundations aren't in place for a strong promotion case this cycle. That's not a verdict on your long-term trajectory — it's an honest diagnosis of where you are right now. The good news: most of these gaps are fixable within 2–3 quarters. Use the action plan below to prioritize your lowest-scoring category first.

You have real strengths and real gaps. A promotion this cycle is possible but would require both continued performance and targeted work on the lower-scoring areas. The key question: do you have 3–4 months to close the gaps before the next calibration window? If yes, focus there. If not, position for the following cycle while building the evidence base.

You have a genuinely solid case. The gaps that remain are likely specific and addressable rather than systemic. At this score, the question shifts from "am I doing the right things?" to "is my case being communicated and advocated effectively?" Have the explicit promotion conversation with your manager now if you haven't already.

You're ready. Your job now is to make sure the system knows it — your manager is briefed, your sponsor is primed, and your case is documented. Don't coast: stay on your impact log, maintain your visibility, and make sure your manager has what they need to walk into calibration and win the argument for you. Then trust the work you've done.

If Part A (Performance) is your lowest: expand your scope deliberately

• Have an explicit conversation with your manager: "What would next-level scope look like for me right now?"
• Volunteer to lead a cross-functional project, not just contribute to one.
• Identify one problem in your organization that has no owner and propose a plan to your manager to take it on.
• For each task you're given, ask: "Am I approaching this the way someone at the next level would?" If not, adjust.

If Part B (Impact) is your lowest: build your documentation habit

• Start your impact log today. Go back 6 months and reconstruct your 5 strongest outcomes.
• Rewrite each accomplishment using the formula: [Action] → [Outcome] → [Business relevance].
• Set a weekly 10-minute calendar block to update your log every Friday.
• In your next 1:1, brief your manager on one specific, quantified impact. Make this a habit.
• Create one artifact (a doc, a framework, a guide) that someone else can use without you explaining it.

If Part C (Relationships) is your lowest: build your advocate network

• Have the explicit promotion conversation with your manager: "I want to make sure you can advocate for me specifically. Here's my case — what's thin?"
• Identify one senior leader outside your direct chain who knows your work. If none exists, prioritize one cross-functional project in the next quarter specifically to build that relationship.
• Volunteer to present your team's work to leadership at least once this quarter.
• Pick one person to develop deliberately — monthly check-in, specific feedback, an introduction to someone useful to them.
• If there's a strained relationship that could surface in calibration: address it directly, now, not later.

If Part D (Readiness) is your lowest: fix the structural picture

• If you haven't signaled your promotion intent: do it this week. Schedule the conversation explicitly.
• If budget or headcount is frozen: have an honest conversation about timeline. When is this expected to lift? Get a realistic answer, not a diplomatic one.
• If your manager is new or has low organizational capital: accelerate your sponsor-building outside your direct chain.
• If you don't have written criteria: ask your manager to help you build them. A shared Google Doc or email summary works. "What would I need to demonstrate for you to submit a promotion case at the next calibration?" — then write down the answer.