职场提升秘笈：寻找靠山

    这种关系通常没有固定的模式可循，“被担保人”也不总是领情。洛杉矶Corazonas Foods食品公司CEO拉蒙娜•卡佩罗表示，在职业生涯早起，她得到了雀巢公司（Nestlé）一位很有身份的高管的指导。当他得知卡佩罗被哈佛商学院（Harvard Business School）录取的消息时，他建议她将上学的计划推迟一年，并保证，如果她继续留在公司，将可以接受更好的教育。卡佩罗听从的这位高管的意见，在上世纪90年代中期，她成为雀巢公司副总经理，然后是诗尚草本（Celestial Seasonings）副总裁，肯德-杰克逊酒园（Kendall-Jackson）执行副总裁。其推荐人蒂姆•克鲁尔成为雀巢美国公司的CEO。卡佩罗表示：“他是我的‘伯乐’，是他让我找到了恰当的职位。”

    你是否具有“千里马”的潜质？

    个人绩效很重要。工作优秀是必要条件，人们在决定为你进行冒险之前，必须确定你忠诚、值得信赖和可靠。希瑟•福斯特-卡明斯认为，这些高管为你的职业发展押上了自己的信誉。她表示：“我们不会带一头驴子去参加赛马比赛。没有人会毫无顾忌地甘冒风险。”

    找出自己的闪光点。埋头苦干不会引起别人的注意。福斯特-卡明斯建议，你所需要做的是，打出自己的名声。比如，自愿接受更具挑战性的任务，参加会议，成为业内的积极分子等。

    顺其自然。大部分关系都是自然形成的，如果你绞尽脑汁要求其他人成为自己的靠山，最终往往徒劳无功。人才创新中心总裁西尔维娅•安•休利特建议：不要把鸡蛋放在一个篮子里。与多个人培养良好的关系，以避免担保人离开公司所带来的损失。

    要自信。即便担心自己没有资格负责某个重大任务，或挂念家中嗷嗷待哺的孩子，也不要向担保人流露出这种矛盾情绪。休利特建议：“表现出你对机会的渴望。”在处理反馈时，一定要经得住考验，做好充分准备，按照靠山的建议行事。

    知恩图报。与师父不同，担保人希望你报之以忠诚的支持。担保者也将从“追随者的能量”中获益，作为自己职业发展的助力。毕竟，谁也无法单枪匹马就能登上事业的顶峰。

    译者：阿龙/汪皓

    These relationships often can't be scripted. And protégés do not usually do the picking. Ramona Cappello, CEO of Corazonas Foods in Los Angeles, says her early career was shepherded by a well-placed executive at Nestlé. When he learned she'd been accepted to Harvard Business School, he told her to delay it for a year and promised that she would get a great education by staying with the company. She did so and rose to become assistant general manager at Nestlé in the mid-1990s, then VP at Celestial Seasonings, and an executive vice president at Kendall-Jackson. Her sponsor, Timm Crull, became CEO of Nestlé USA. "I was found," she says, "and he made sure I had all the right roles."

    Are you a potential protégé?

    Performance counts. Great work is a must, and before anyone can take a chance on you, they must see that you're loyal, trustworthy, and dependable. These executives are betting their own reputations on your career, says Heather Foust-Cummings, a senior director of research at Catalyst, a nonprofit dedicated to expanding women's career opportunities. "You don't take a donkey to the Kentucky Derby," she says. "No one will take the risk on you."

    Find your star power. Don't assume that putting your head down and doing your work will get you noticed. You need to become a known entity, says Foust-Cummings. Volunteer for bigger assignments, attend conferences, and become active in your industry.

    Don't force it. Most relationships evolve naturally and won't happen if you flat out ask someone to be your sponsor. Hedge your bets against your sponsor leaving the company by nurturing relationships with multiple people, says Sylvia Ann Hewlett, president of the Center for Talent Innovation.

    Be confident. If you're worried you're not qualified for that major assignment or concerned about your 2-year-old at home, do not share your honest ambivalence with a sponsor. "Show you're hungry for an opportunity," says Hewlett. When you get feedback, handle it with a thick skin and be prepared to act on advice given.

    Return the favor. Unlike a mentor, a sponsor will expect your loyal support in return. A sponsor benefits, too, from the "power of the posse" to build his or her own career. After all, no one gets to the top alone.