As a bit of backstory, I've worked as an independent contractor for a large US company for the past 5 years, running training sessions for their customers. In this role, I have a manager and am part of a team.
For the past couple of months I've been working with the CEO directly (this is a multi $$ billion company) on a side project. His feedback has been amazing, and he put me in charge of running another project independently, which has now been completed, again with first-class feedback.
Last week, the HR department posted a job opening for a senior management position. The salary is around $30k more than I'm currently receiving. I checked the job description and it sounded perfect, only drawback is that only W2 employees could apply.
I reached out to HR who said they'd check with the hiring manager if they'd consider hiring a contractor. They came back and said, sorry, no. It seems to be purely individual preference within the company if a role is W2 or contractor (some openings in the company are listed for both W2 and contractors).
Both situations have made me realise I'm ready for a change / challenge. I've grown so much in my current role, and I love the company and people.
But I feel completely stuck and unsure what to do...
How do I (or even, should I) approach the CEO and ask the question if it's possible to work on his projects and move away from my current role, which is highly specialised...?
Or....do I mention to him that I would have loved the senior management role and am disappointed I couldn't apply?
Or...do I do nothing. Continue in my current role and accept the status quo. Be grateful for the experience I've gained and use it to propel myself forward, outside the company?
I'd be so grateful for any thoughts as I'm totally muddled right now!