Nowadays, promotions are not the only way up. Lateral moves can also help you with your career.
Some employees think that lateral career moves are not so important. On the contrary, it may help you advance your career even more than moving up.
According to Motto, a lateral career move is "a move within the company that doesn't result in a title change." The publication busted three myths about lateral career moves and shared how it can actually help employees with their ambitions.
A lot of people think that a lateral move does not help in career advancement. In truth, being transferred to another department actually means that you get to learn different parts of the business operations.
Lateral moves, when seen in this light, will enable employees to learn more about the business than their colleagues. Moreover, now that one knows how everything works, this could result to a management role in the future.
The second myth is that lateral moves will make you lose all your contacts as well as your momentum. This will only happen if you allow it to happen.
"It's your responsibility to keep up with those you've left behind," Motto advised. "There's no one more relevant than the person who can share a best practice from their new organization with their old co-workers."
Lastly, it is assumed that a lateral move does not increase responsibility. The publication noted that a lateral change in a massive corporation can actually mean being an individual contributor one day and being responsible for the performance of a team in the next.
Ultimately, you are in charge of managing your career path. This means that every lateral move is an opportunity to learn new skills and earn new responsibilities.
Associations Now added that many American workers are now open to the idea of a lateral career move. They are all up for it, especially if it results to better work-life balance and professional development.
