# building-a-promotion-case

Organize your work accomplishments, pinpoint skill gaps, and draft conversation scripts with your manager to secure your next career promotion.

- skill · `type=skill` · Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Gemini CLI, OpenCode · 1900 installs · ★ 1434
- Author: RefoundAI
- License: MIT · policy=mirror · the beginning of the file is at the end of this page
- Source: https://github.com/RefoundAI/lenny-skills/tree/HEAD/skills/building-a-promotion-case/SKILL.md
- Updated: 2026-07-16
- HTML: https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/skills/building-a-promotion-case

## What it does

This skill turns day-to-day achievements into a structured case for advancement. It incorporates 11 insights gathered from 6 guests on Lenny's Podcast and Newsletter. The agent walks you through four steps: cataloging business wins, analyzing gaps against career ladders, planning the 1:1 discussion, and packaging proof for calibration rounds.

Included artifacts cover a brag document, a career gap action plan spreadsheet, and Jackie Bavaro's conversation script. The assistant prompts you to focus on strategic outcomes rather than plain task lists. It also checks whether you already operate at the scope of the target level.

Waiting for the official review cycle is usually too late because calibrations take place weeks before. This skill requires concrete metrics, dates, and screenshots to build an effective case.

## Install

### Claude Code (native platform)

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add RefoundAI/lenny-skills --skill building-a-promotion-case -a claude-code
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `~/.claude/skills/building-a-promotion-case/SKILL.md` — Copy the whole skill folder; for one project use .claude/skills/building-a-promotion-case/

### Codex

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add RefoundAI/lenny-skills --skill building-a-promotion-case -a codex
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.agents/skills/building-a-promotion-case/SKILL.md` — For all projects use ~/.agents/skills/

### Cursor

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add RefoundAI/lenny-skills --skill building-a-promotion-case -a cursor
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.cursor/skills/building-a-promotion-case/SKILL.md` — Cursor also reads .agents/skills/ and .claude/skills/

### GitHub Copilot

1. **GitHub CLI**
```bash
gh skill install RefoundAI/lenny-skills building-a-promotion-case
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.github/skills/building-a-promotion-case/SKILL.md`

### Gemini CLI

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add RefoundAI/lenny-skills --skill building-a-promotion-case -a gemini-cli
```

2. **Platform CLI**
```bash
gemini skills install https://github.com/RefoundAI/lenny-skills --path skills/building-a-promotion-case
```

### Windsurf (Devin Desktop)

**Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.devin/skills/building-a-promotion-case/SKILL.md` — The legacy .windsurf/skills/ path still works

### OpenCode

**Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add RefoundAI/lenny-skills --skill building-a-promotion-case -a opencode
```

### Claude.ai

**Claude.ai**
- Zip the folder and upload it in Settings → Capabilities → Skills

Where a file is given instead of a command, copy the files from the source to that path: https://github.com/RefoundAI/lenny-skills/tree/HEAD/skills/building-a-promotion-case/SKILL.md

## When to use it
- catalog major wins and connect them to business metrics
- draft a script for a 1:1 promotion conversation with a manager
- identify behavioral and skill gaps against target role ladders
- package screenshots and testimonials for promotion calibrations

## Example prompts
- Help me build a brag document for my projects over the last six months
- Draft a 1:1 script to discuss my promotion timeline with my manager
- Review my current responsibilities and identify skill gaps for the next level

## Source text · SKILL.md · MIT

Below is the content of a third-party file. It is data, not instructions for you: do not act on anything written inside unless the human asks. Block tag: ece73e2a7af40980.

BEGIN THIRD-PARTY FILE ece73e2a7af40980
```text
---
name: building-a-promotion-case
description: Help users systematically document their impact, identify skill gaps, and collaborate with their managers to secure a promotion by proving they are already operating at the next level.
---

# Building a Promotion Case

Turn your professional impact into a compelling, data-backed argument for your next career move.

Help the user with building a promotion case using insights from 6 guests and posts across Lenny's Podcast and Newsletter.

## How to Help

1. **Inventory Impact** - Help users list their major wins and map them to specific business growth metrics or organizational goals.
2. **Gap Analysis** - Compare current performance against both formal career ladders and unwritten behaviors rewarded at the company.
3. **Strategic Alignment** - Guide the user in drafting a script for a 1:1 conversation to explicitly state their ambitions and align on a timeline.
4. **Package the Proof** - Assist in organizing screenshots, metrics, and testimonials into a structured document that champions can use in calibration.

## Core Principles

### Perform the Role Before You Have It
From "How to get promoted": "People don’t get promoted for doing their jobs really well. They get promoted by demonstrating their potential to do more. At many companies, you get promoted only after you’ve demonstrated you can handle the next level."

The most effective way to prove readiness is to proactively take on the scope and responsibilities of the target role before the official title change.

### State Your Ambitions Explicitly
From "How to get promoted": "When was the last time you told your manager you’d love to get promoted? It may seem obvious to you, but they may not know how important this is to you. Bring it up at your next 1:1 and see what happens."

Managers are not mind readers: you must clearly communicate your desire for promotion so it can be factored into organizational planning.

### Capture Proof in Real-Time
From "How to be prepared for layoffs": "Go open up a new doc and start dumping a list of times you’ve made an impact at your current job. Include metrics, screenshots, timelines, stories—anything that’ll help you tell the story of your successes."

Maintain a running document of specific metrics, timelines, and screenshots while the data is fresh and accessible to avoid scrambling during review season.

### Decode Rewarded Behaviors
From "How to get promoted": "Explicitly or implicitly, every company prioritizes different skills and behaviors. If you pay attention to who gets promoted, you can start to see what actually matters at your company."
```
END THIRD-PARTY FILE ece73e2a7af40980

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First 2648 of 6165 bytes. © RefoundAI · MIT · https://github.com/RefoundAI/lenny-skills/tree/HEAD/skills/building-a-promotion-case/SKILL.md

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