This is a short one, but an important one. If you want to assess your prospects for progression, whether in the organisation you're currently in or one you're considering joining, there's a simple place to start: look at the org chart.

The Questions to Ask

How many people are at the same level as you? How many people are above you? And how many people are above the people above you?

Then dig a little deeper. What are the prospects of the tier above you being promoted themselves? Is the headcount of the office actually growing? Are the people above you likely to move any time soon?

Now look sideways at the people at your own level. How capable are they, honestly, compared with you? Is one of them already a shoo-in for the next promotion should it come up, and how would that affect you? There has to be a logical step for you to move up into. If there isn't one, you have a problem.

A Real Example of a Top Heavy Team

Let me give you an extreme but genuine example. Take one of the largest QS consultancies in the UK and one of their northern offices. The QS team there is around ten people strong, and I kid you not, the structure looks like this: a director in charge of the office, another three directors below that individual, then one or two associates, which leaves just four remaining members of staff at senior QS level or below.

So four directors, a couple of associates, and four people doing the delivery. If you're a senior QS in that office, where the hell do you go? The team is already incredibly top heavy. Assuming you want to stay in that city, where else can you possibly progress within that business?

And think about what it means for management experience too. With an overall team of ten and four directors, not even all the directors will genuinely be managing people. From a career standpoint, I simply don't understand why somebody would choose to stay in that scenario.

This Isn't Just a Regional Problem

This situation exists in many smaller regional offices, where teams are naturally leaner and hierarchies fill up quickly. But the same logic applies in London too. The offices may be bigger, but look at your particular department and ask the same questions. Are the people above me moving? Is the hierarchy above me already incredibly top heavy? If it is, then realistically, where are you going any time soon?

The Takeaway

Look at the org chart, objectively and realistically, for both your current employer and any business you're considering. Ask yourself honestly: what are my opportunities for further progression here? What are my opportunities to properly step into management and genuinely manage people? The structure on that one page will often tell you more about your future than any promise made in a review meeting.