Career deadlock or new horizons?

The peak career development of most modern managers is a career dead end. This paradoxical discovery came sociological scientists, analyzing the experience of thousands of top managers.

The essence of the problem lies in the fact that at a certain stage, the manager, moving up the career ladder, reaches the position of the right hand of the company’s owner and that’s all. Further deadlock by definition. Few company owners (especially in Russia) are ready to give up the full management of their business to their subordinates, even the most ingenious ones.

At this stage, it is psychologically difficult for top managers to realize that, often having greater knowledge and being better specialists than the owner himself, having invested in the development of the company no less than the owner, they will never be equal to him in status and ability to make management decisions . In this company they will forever be second. Often at this stage there is a conflict with the head, who from the “locomotive” of the company’s development begins to see in the subordinate a dangerous rival. But even if one does not consider such an extreme (though not rare) scenario, there is almost always a loss of interest in the company from the top. The goal, which led him all the years to the top, turned out to be ephemeral, and the former drive, which made him move mountains, disappears imperceptibly.

Psychologists in this situation recommend taking a time out. You need to take a long vacation, during which you can physically and mentally relax and try to comprehend the situation. It is useful in this case to work with a professional coach.

Sometimes to restore interest and the emergence of a new landmark, it is simply to expand the scope of its activities in this enterprise. The expansion of functional responsibilities will not only improve their professionalism, but also open up a new field of activity for the application of their efforts.

If you feel that all the opportunities for self-realization in this company have been exhausted, it may be worth thinking seriously about changing jobs.

For example, in America it is widely accepted that a good top manager should change jobs at least once every five years, and it is desirable that all companies work in different industries. In this case, the manager does not lose qualifications and gains extensive experience and status of a universal.

So, you have two choices: create your own company or go to another. And if everything is clear with the creation of your company, then the choice of an alternative company in Russia is not so simple.

Although today, according to the assessment of professional recruiters, there is an acute shortage of experienced managers in the country, there is still no guarantee that the new job will provide not only professional development, but also sufficient financial reward. As a rule, there are not so many alternative companies in which the top professional would be interested in working, and there is not always a guarantee that there are vacancies currently in senior positions. In this case, one has to either adapt to the existing work, or compromise.

Among other things, it often happens that companies lure tops just for the sake of information about competing firms, and then they dismiss employees who have lost their value. There are also cases when entrepreneurial employers announced a competition to fill a vacant position with very attractive financial conditions. The only requirement of the competition is to develop a strategic development plan for this company for 5 years, for example. The gullible job seekers do this work for free and as a result receive a legitimate notification that they unfortunately did not pass through the competition.

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And although in the case of tops such decompositions are quite rare, they still stop many from actively searching for another job. And the psychological discomfort and dissatisfaction with the current situation continues to accumulate.

There is no universal recommendation to overcome this deadlock. In each case, the solution will have to find yourself.

In conclusion, we summarize the general algorithm of actions to find a way out of the crisis:

Take a vacation. By yourself or with the help of a coach, clearly define what exactly does not suit you in this situation.

Try to resolve this situation by a frank conversation with the owner of the company about your future position in the company. Perhaps together you will find a way out in granting you additional powers or an option for the company’s shares.

If you could not coordinate your interests with the interests of the owner, really assess your chances and opportunities for creating your own business. Many Russian and, of course, Western managers have created prosperous companies, sometimes even seriously competing to the companies of the former employer. But in the end, losing such a professional as you, he himself created this problem for himself.