You’re doing great work. Your performance reviews are solid. Yet somehow, promotions keep going to others. If you’re wondering whether you’re being passed over—or if you’re just impatient—this article will help you see the difference, and more importantly, what to do about it.
The Data You Need to Know First
Before we dive into the signs, let’s acknowledge the elephant in the room: if you’re a woman, especially a woman of color, you’re statistically more likely to be overlooked for promotion.
According to McKinsey’s 2025 Women in the Workplace report, for every 100 men promoted to manager, only 93 women are promoted. For women of color, it’s worse: 82 Latinas and 60 Black women are promoted for every 100 men.
This isn’t about individual performance. Research from MIT found that women were 14% less likely to be promoted at one company—and the major factor? Women were consistently judged as having lower “leadership potential” than men, even when they received higher performance ratings.
Translation: You can be doing better work and still get passed over.
For the first time in 2025, there’s also an “ambition gap”—80% of women want to be promoted compared to 86% of men. But here’s what matters: when women receive the same career support that men do, this ambition gap disappears entirely.
So if you’re feeling less motivated to pursue promotion lately, it might not be you. It might be that you’re subconsciously picking up on the signals that you’re not being set up for success.
Let’s identify those signals.
The Subtle Signs You’re Being Overlooked
Sign 1: Your Annual Reviews Feel Like Déjà Vu
If your performance reviews read almost identically year after year—same strengths, same “areas for development,” same vague encouragement—that’s a red flag.
Why it matters: Employees being groomed for promotion receive feedback that evolves. They’re told specifically what skills they need to develop for the next level, given stretch assignments to build those skills, and their reviews reflect measurable progression toward leadership.
If your reviews are static, you’re not on a growth trajectory—you’re being maintained at your current level.
Sign 2: You’re Not Being Given Stretch Assignments
When’s the last time your boss gave you a project that pushed you beyond your current role? If you’re consistently handling the same type of work without increasing complexity, visibility, or strategic importance, that’s a problem.
Employees earmarked for promotion are given opportunities to prove they can handle the next level. They’re put on high-visibility projects, asked to present to senior leadership, or given temporary expanded scope.
If you’re just really, really good at your current job—and that’s all you’re asked to do—you’re not being developed.
Sign 3: Peers and Junior Colleagues Are Advancing Faster
Look around. Are people who joined after you—or at the same time—getting promoted while you’re still waiting? If you have similar or stronger performance, this is a significant warning sign.
This is especially telling if the people getting promoted ahead of you are male, less experienced, or don’t have stronger track records. That’s not coincidence; that’s pattern.
Sign 4: You’re Doing a Lot of “Non-Promotable Work”
Are you the person who always takes meeting notes? Organizes the team party? Handles the administrative tasks no one else wants? Mentors new hires without compensation? Serves on committees that have no real influence?
Research shows women are nearly 50% more likely to volunteer for—and be expected to perform—”non-promotable tasks” that benefit the organization but don’t advance careers.
These tasks are necessary, but they don’t demonstrate leadership potential or strategic thinking. Worse, they take time away from the high-impact work that does get recognized.
If your time is increasingly consumed by office housework while male colleagues focus on revenue-generating or strategic projects, you’re being sidelined.
Sign 5: You’re Not in the Room Where It Happens
Pay attention to meetings. Are you routinely excluded from strategic discussions, executive presentations, or decision-making sessions where your input would be relevant?
Promotion isn’t just about doing good work—it’s about visibility to decision-makers. If you’re not in rooms with senior leadership, they can’t see your potential.
This also includes external visibility: Are you being sent to conferences, asked to represent the company, or included in client-facing work? Or are those opportunities going to others?
Sign 6: Your Boss Avoids Career Development Conversations
When you try to discuss your career goals or ask about promotion timelines, does your boss change the subject, give vague responses, or say “let’s revisit that next quarter” repeatedly?
Managers who are invested in your advancement will have specific, concrete conversations about your path forward. They’ll outline clear criteria, tell you what to focus on, and check in regularly on progress.
If your boss can’t or won’t engage in these conversations, they may not see you moving up—or they may be actively preventing it.
Sign 7: You Don’t Have a Sponsor
A mentor gives advice. A sponsor advocates for you when you’re not in the room. They put your name forward for opportunities, defend your contributions to senior leadership, and actively campaign for your advancement.
According to the McKinsey report, only 31% of entry-level women have a sponsor, compared to 45% of men at the same level. Women are also less likely to have a senior coworker put them up for promotion or introduce them to people who can help their careers.
If you don’t know who your sponsor is—or if you’re certain you don’t have one—that’s a major obstacle to advancement.
Sign 8: You’re Praised for Being “Reliable” But Not “Strategic”
Pay attention to how your work is described. Are you consistently praised for being dependable, thorough, organized, a team player—but rarely described as strategic, innovative, a leader, or visionary?
Language matters. “Reliable” employees are valued for execution. “Strategic” employees are seen as leadership material.
This is particularly common for women, who are often recognized for communal qualities (collaborative, supportive) while men are praised for agentic qualities (assertive, confident)—the traits associated with leadership.
Sign 9: Feedback Is Vague or Shifting
Have you asked what you need to do to get promoted, only to receive unclear or inconsistent answers? Or worse, you meet the stated criteria, but then new requirements suddenly appear?
Example: You’re told you need more client-facing experience. You get client-facing experience. Then you’re told you need to demonstrate strategic thinking. You demonstrate strategic thinking. Then you’re told you need to improve your executive presence. And so on.
Moving goalposts suggest the real issue isn’t your qualifications—it’s that the decision-makers don’t want to promote you and are creating post-hoc justifications.
Sign 10: You Feel Professionally Invisible
This is the gut-level one. Do you feel seen and valued? Or do you feel like your contributions are overlooked, your ideas are credited to others, and your achievements go unrecognized?
Trust your instincts. If you feel invisible despite doing visible work, something is wrong.
What to Do If You’re Recognizing These Signs
Step 1: Gather Data
Before taking action, document everything:
- Track your achievements with specific metrics and outcomes
- Note who got promoted and their qualifications compared to yours
- Save positive feedback emails from colleagues, clients, and leadership
- Record dates and details of career conversations (or lack thereof) with your manager
- Document examples of being excluded from meetings or opportunities
This isn’t paranoia—it’s preparation. You may need this evidence later.
Step 2: Have a Direct Conversation
Schedule a dedicated meeting with your manager. Come prepared with specific questions:
“I’d like to discuss my career trajectory here. What specific milestones or achievements do I need to be considered for promotion to [next level]?”
“I’ve noticed [colleague] was recently promoted. Can you help me understand what differentiated their candidacy from mine?”
“I’m interested in developing leadership skills. What high-visibility projects or stretch assignments can I take on?”
Pay attention to the response. A good manager will give you concrete, actionable guidance. An evasive manager will deflect.
Step 3: Build Your Own Visibility
Don’t wait for permission to be visible:
- Share your wins: Send quarterly updates to your manager highlighting key achievements
- Volunteer strategically: Say yes to high-impact projects, no to office housework
- Build relationships up: Find reasons to interact with senior leadership—present at meetings, ask for informational interviews, contribute to strategic initiatives
- Get external validation: Speak at conferences, publish articles, get quoted in your industry—this forces internal recognition
Step 4: Find a Sponsor
If you don’t have a sponsor, you need to cultivate one. Look for senior leaders who:
- Have influence with decision-makers
- Are respected in the organization
- Have a track record of advocating for others
- Work in an adjacent area where they can see your impact
Build the relationship by being genuinely useful to them. Solve problems, provide insights, make their job easier. Then, when appropriate, be direct: “I’m aiming for promotion to [level] and would greatly value your advocacy and guidance.”
Step 5: Learn to Say No to Non-Promotable Work
This is hard, especially for women who face backlash for saying no. But your time is finite. Every hour spent on committee work is an hour not spent on strategic projects.
Scripts:
- “I’d love to help, but I’m at capacity with [strategic project]. Can you check with [other person]?”
- “I’ve been focusing on higher-impact work this quarter. Is this something that could wait until [later date]?”
- “I’m happy to help train someone else to handle this going forward.”
Step 6: Create a Timeline
Decide how long you’re willing to wait for meaningful progress. Six months? A year? Two years?
Set specific checkpoints:
- By [date], I will have clarity on promotion criteria
- By [date], I will have a sponsor identified
- By [date], I will have completed [stretch project]
- By [date], I will reassess whether this organization is investing in my growth
Having a timeline prevents you from waiting indefinitely for a promotion that may never come.
Step 7: Start Exploring External Options
Sometimes the smartest move isn’t fighting the system—it’s leaving for an organization that values what you bring.
Update your LinkedIn, reach out to your network, and start having conversations with recruiters. Even if you’re not ready to leave, knowing your market value and having options changes the dynamic.
You may also find that once you have a competing offer, suddenly your current employer discovers room for that promotion they said wasn’t available. (Though consider whether you want to stay somewhere that only values you when you’re leaving.)
When to Escalate
If you believe you’re experiencing discrimination (based on gender, race, age, or other protected characteristics), document everything and consider:
- Speaking with HR—but understand that HR protects the company, not you
- Consulting an employment attorney to understand your options
- Filing a complaint with the EEOC if you have evidence of systematic discrimination
This is a serious decision with potential consequences. Get legal advice before taking this step.
The Hard Truth
Here’s what many professional women eventually learn: working harder doesn’t guarantee promotion. Being excellent at your job doesn’t guarantee promotion. Even exceeding expectations doesn’t guarantee promotion.
Promotion requires visibility, advocacy, and political capital. It requires being in rooms where decisions are made. It requires people in power believing you have “potential”—a subjective judgment that’s heavily influenced by unconscious bias.
You can do everything right and still get passed over because the system isn’t designed to promote women at the same rate as men. That’s not your failure—it’s structural.
But you’re not powerless. You can advocate for yourself more effectively. You can build the relationships and visibility that create opportunities. You can decide when it’s time to find an organization that deserves your talent.
The key is recognizing the signs early, so you’re not wasting years waiting for a promotion that was never going to happen.
Additional Resources
McKinsey & LeanIn.Org: Women in the Workplace 2025 Report
