Free promotion readiness checklist
Before you ask for a step up, check the case is actually ready. Ten questions, an honest score, and the specific gaps to close before the conversation.
Free, no sign-up · Last updated
Use the Promotion Readiness Checklist
Everything stays in your browser. You can edit your answers and run it again as many times as you like.
I know exactly which role or level I am asking for
A vague ask gets a vague answer.
I know the criteria my employer uses for that level
Ask your manager directly if it is not written down.
I have at least three recorded examples against those criteria
Dated examples, in your own words.
At least one example has a measurable result
A figure is helpful, but never invent one.
I have already done parts of the role above mine
Promotion usually confirms what you are doing, not what you might do.
I have positive feedback from someone other than my manager
Peers, customers and other departments carry weight.
I know my two weakest areas and what I am doing about them
Naming a gap first is far stronger than being told it.
I have picked a sensible time to ask
Avoid peak trading weeks and the day budgets are set.
My manager knows this conversation is coming
No one promotes someone who ambushes them.
I know what I will ask for if the answer is not yet
A development plan with a review date is a good second outcome.
How this tool works
Most promotion conversations fail on preparation rather than performance. The request is vague, the evidence is remembered rather than recorded, and the manager is hearing about it for the first time.
These ten checks cover the things that decide the outcome: a clear ask, the employer's criteria, dated evidence against them, a measurable result where one honestly exists, and a plan for a "not yet" answer.
If the score is low, do not treat it as a no. Treat it as a list. Most people move from early stage to ready in a few months of deliberate evidence collection.
What happens to the information you enter
- Your answers stay in your browser. Nothing is sent to a server or saved.
- No account is needed and nothing is shared with your employer.
- Refreshing the page clears your answers.
Read the EarnedStory privacy policy for the full detail.
What this tool will not do
- It checks your preparation, not your performance or your employer's budget.
- It cannot know your organisation's promotion process. Ask for it in writing where one exists.
Frequently asked questions
- When is the right time to ask?
- When you have recorded evidence against the criteria, and outside your employer's busiest trading period. Bringing a written case to a scheduled one-to-one works better than raising it on the shop floor.
- What if the answer is no?
- Ask what specific evidence would change the answer, and agree a review date. A documented development plan is a good second outcome.
- Do I need an account to use this?
- No. An account is only useful if you want to build the evidence into a promotion case over time.
Keep your evidence in one place
A free Career Passport records what you have actually done, dated and in your own words, so your next CV, interview or promotion case starts from evidence rather than memory.