In thinking that progression at work is a myth?

My first employer i did not progress much whilst others breezed - defo lots of nepotism and cliques.

My second job i progressed well and third the even better- from the start of my second job to now (12 years total) I have tripled my salary

I’ve worked for the same company for a lot of years. I started in the mid range but I liked the place so I stayed and really threw my heart into it. Was recently promoted to a senior position with a 25k payrise. It can and does happen.

Not my experience, I started on telemarketing and worked my way up through customer service, supervisor, team leader, team manager, department manager………. now part of the senior leadership team for a large global org, on about 10 times the salary I started on.

I asked for mentoring, took on additional tasks, saw opportunities to improve processes and took my proposals to my managers with defined plans on how to implement those changes and the benefits they would bring. I applied for roles when they came available and several times I saw opportunities for new roles to be created then developed business proposals which I presented to leadership along with why I should be the one to fill that role.

i have no formal education beyond some bad A-level results, no connections or networks beyond those I’ve developed while building my career, my family were all working class in factories or admin roles for most of their lives.

Absolutely my experience of 4 different organisations. You need:
To ideally be male.
White.
To be part of the in-crowd.
Be prepared to brown-nose.
Be very ostentatiously performative in your role.
Be young (30ish is OK or mid to late 20s).

The only time I've seen exceptions to this has been in start-ups where being able to actually do a good job is appreciated before the corporate power plays start.

And when was that? And how do the requirements she had to meet back then to progress line up with the requirements for shortlisting below her today?

I'm of the age when we were all able to get fake it till you make it jobs and work up. The old routes do not exist. It's unfair to quote someone's past career climb to today's environment

So why don't you leave and find a better job? retrain?

Best friend is in retail, progressed from shop floor (started at 18) to office job two levels below CEO, 130k+ package.

What are you doing to improve your position apart from complaining?

I think you have to be willing to move companies every few years now, to get the salary raises, a broad overview of your industry through different lenses, and the fat contacts book. Getting yourself in your industry's magazine or newsletter doesn't hurt either, with a professional photo that can be whipped off on demand.

I know plenty of people who grew up from trainees to C-level in FTSE top businesses.

Yes, some (smaller I'd imagine) companies might have culture of nepotism, but it's generally not true for larger businesses.
Career progression requires very specific skills and qualities and it's very difficult for most people to accept that the issue is not with the business, but with them, their lack of those skills. In general, one or two missed opportunities might be bad luck, but if it's ongoing, then better to look in the mirror.

Absolutely not. I worked my way up from very junior to director level, no nepotism or cronyism involved, I just worked for a really good company that invested heavily in its employees (and worked my ass off!)
I now own my own business and invest a huge amount of money in staff training and development. I have one director that started with me as a very junior member of staff and have promoted two people into new roles in the last 6 months. There are decent companies to work for and if you don’t work at one? Look to leave.

I work for the Education department, but non teaching. I have managed 2 promotions in the 3 years I’ve been there, and as I said that includes a years Mat leave, and I can think of loads of people who have moved around/up in that time too. There are opportunities in the right sector I think, it’s just hard to see when you’re stuck somewhere with no real prospects/a ‘jobs for the boys’ culture.

I think it heavily depends on your job. Some jobs have a big hierarchy and progression is fairly straightforward with specific targets to hit to progress. I think this is the case to some extent with what I do, however I have only been able to get promotions and pay increases by moving. Whenever I have felt ready for a promotion and not offered it, I started interviewing elsewhere, said I was on a higher salary than I was actually on (~30k more each time) with the responsibilities I felt I could do and interviewed for THAT job. I think this is easier to do in tech however, bc the interview is all based on ability, so you demonstrate that ability in the technical part of that interview or you dont and you get the job based on that.

Most progression relies on reputation. To get a good reputation you have to do good work but people also need to know that you do good work. So you do need to be good at subtly promoting yourself and building networks otherwise you end up slaving away with noone knowing about it. Relying on your manager or your appraisal process to do that is also a bit of a mistake in most workplaces.

I think you've been very lucky. I work somewhere where the vast majority of internal promotions are well deserved. But there is still a tiny minority of people who are a bit shit and seem to get promoted even though everyone knows they are shit, it's almost like they have been promoted to keep them out of trouble. Then there are the people who are very ambitious who spend all their time managing upwards and only do things that make themselves look good but actually are lazy and don't give a shit about doing a good job and leave a trail of destruction in their wake, although they tend to get caught out eventually. So (she says tongue in cheek) if you've never seen it, is it because you're the one being promoted undeservedly?

I've only really got experience of my own industry (law) but you definitely can and do progress if you have the ability and you are willing to work for it. I've hit a ceiling i think as a salaried partner because I'm good at the technical lawyer and managing people but hopeless at finding and winning new business which is essential for an equity partner. That's ok, where I have got to suits me.

But there are lots of lawyers who just coast, work contracted hours only and don't seem to actually be interested in the job or becoming better at practising the law or going the extra mile to give the clients a stellar service. They moan and moan about not being promoted as if they should get it just for "time served". It's really not like that.

Are you able to share more about your field?

I think it depends on your area of work. I work in a big government department. I was on maternity within my first year of working there too. But I worked my ass off, got a good reputation and completed a degree in my own time outside of work - my salary is now close to double what it was 3 years ago. And I’m new to the area so no ‘jobs for the boys’ relationship to build on.
If that’s how it feels in your area maybe it’s time to look for a move?

Your singular experience doesnt apply to everyone. Most professional roles senior people got there by advancing through the ranks. Like me.

This is just another version of “the system Is rigged for rich people” never ending thread you keep posting. Give over with the broken record.

Yep, particularly if you are competent in your existing role, they will want to keep you there. They pay lip service to 'promotion within' and any 'learning and development' is window dressing to look good meanwhile the content won't prepare you for the reality.
There have been a few that have gone up through the ranks but usually through ruthlessness or relationships. The pay doesn't reflect the shit thrown at you either. Retail is shit.

Not my experience. I started on £14k + £200 bonus in 2012 and now earn £75k + £15-20k bonus. On third mat leave atm too.

Whilst I am very capable at my job, I have never underestimated the importance of my profile and have worked very hard to make sure the right people know who I am. I’ve always been open to new opportunities within the organisation which has also helped as I’ve done sideways moves and secondments in addition to promotions.

Most organisations are triangles with less space at the top so progression can’t be guaranteed

moving is a better route to progression

No I do not agree

Over my career, I moreI trebled my salary

I changed departments several times, took on extra responsibility, learnt new skills, took on extra work, on call, shift work

I also moved to work in new locations several times

I worked for a huge company & there was lots of scope for progression

Eg
Charity fund raising
Volunteer days
Employee representative
Opportunity to complete qualifications
Access to training on & off site
Provide training to new starters
Provide an over view to visitors
Secondment opportunities
Shared & communicated info to other departments

However, some people are happy to plod along & do the same job, with a low level of responsibility

I think you are projecting here based on your own workplace.

In my experience talented people have been able to progress, often very quickly - and most organisations have been quite meritocratic in this way.

The places I have worked which are most closed off were actually minimum wage type jobs, where it was all little power dominions and mates supporting each other, so if you weren’t in the ‘in’ crowd that was it.