Getting your manager to recognize your accomplishments is key to career growth. You want to get noticed for promotions, pay raises, projects, and growth opportunities
But how exactly should you present your achievements to your manager in a way that makes an impact? Follow these 7 proven tips along with examples to highlight your wins skillfully
1. Schedule a One-on-One Meeting
Don’t just casually mention your accomplishments in passing. Set up a dedicated 30 minute one-on-one meeting with your manager to discuss your achievements.
Pick a time when your manager is unlikely to feel rushed or distracted. Having their full attention for a focused discussion shows this is an important topic worth delving into deeply.
2. Have a Game Plan Going In
Simply going into the meeting and rambling about random things you’ve done will not be very compelling. You need to have clear goals for the meeting.
- What promotions, projects, or responsibilities are you aiming for?
- What 2-3 top achievements do you want to highlight?
- What feedback or advice do you hope your manager will give?
With an agenda in mind, you can steer the conversation intentionally towards those goals.
3. Start by Highlighting Your Value
Before diving into your accomplishments, first remind your manager about the value you provide to the team and company. Demonstrate you understand your core contributions and role.
For example: “As you know, in my role as sales manager, I’m focused on driving our team’s performance to achieve quarterly revenue goals through mentoring reps, optimizing processes, and implementing sales initiatives.”
This frames the context for then presenting your standout achievements in these areas.
4. Quantify and Qualify Your Achievements
Now get into highlighting your wins. For maximum impact, discuss achievements where you:
- Quantified results: Increased sales 10%, saved $35K in costs, boosted productivity by 15%
- Exceeded goals: Surpassed sales targets by 20%, delivered major project under deadline
- Solved problems: Overhauled process to reduce errors, resolved customer complaint issue
- Received acknowledgment: Won company award, got recognized by leadership, complimented by clients
- Learned new skills: Earned new certifications, mastered key software to benefit projects
Back up claims with hard metrics, documents, or emails when possible.
5. Emphasize Skills and Abilities
Make sure to call out the skills, competencies, and ability you demonstrated to achieve results. For instance:
- “Driving process improvements showed my ability to identify inefficiencies and find solutions.”
- “Exceeding goals while mentoring junior reps demonstrated my sales leadership skills.”
This highlights why you deserve more responsibility moving forward.
6. Share Ideas to Replicate Success
Proactively share ideas you have to sustain and replicate your achievements. Are there other areas you could drive similar results? Discuss projects or initiatives you want to own to keep momentum going.
This shows you are ambitious and thinking about the future. It gives your manager new ideas while positioning you to lead key efforts.
7. Express Interest in Growth
Wrap up by directly expressing your interest in continuing to grow and build on your successes. For example:
- “Based on the success achieved, I’m very interested in taking on more responsibility leading cross-functional initiatives.”
- “I welcome any feedback you may have on areas I can keep improving. My goal is to demonstrate I’m ready to move into a management role in the next year.”
This leaves no doubt about your aspirations so your manager can respond accordingly.
Email Template to Follow Up
After your in-person discussion, follow up with a summary email to your manager recapping your top achievements and any next steps discussed.
Here’s a template:
Subject line: Follow up – Achievements Discussion
Dear [Manager’s name],
Thank you for the time today to discuss my achievements over the past year and my interest in taking on more responsibility moving forward. As we discussed, I’m very eager to build on the successes I’ve achieved in [key areas like sales, product launches, etc.].
The highlights I want to reiterate are:
-[Quantified achievement like increased sales by 15%]
-[Achievement showing you exceeded goals]
-[Success story demonstrating leadership skills]
Regards,
[Your name]
Consistently Promote Your Achievements
Don’t make this a one-time discussion. Look for regular opportunities to promote your achievements with your manager through status updates, emails, and informal chats. Timely, relevant, quantified examples will remind them of your contributions and capabilities throughout the year.
With the right preparation and strategic communication, you can compel your manager to recognize and reward your work. This template gives you an effective approach to highlight your value in a way that furthers your career growth.
Go deeper and explain
Reflect on the precise context in which you worked, on the actions taken and results obtained.
Find the right words to clearly communicate these achievements to your interviewers.
Explain it a bit like you would tell a story.
In these situations, have I:
- Resolved a critical issue?
- Created or built something?
- Developed an idea?
- Successfully met a challenge?
- Followed instructions and reached the set goal?
- Recognized a need and filled it?
- Actively contributed to a decision or a change?
- Increased sales figures, efficiency, profitability or overall turnover?
- Helped someone achieve his or her goals?
- Saved time and money?
- Received an award or congratulations?
Context
During my supervised project at ABCD Inc., my supervisor asked me to find a solution that would simplify the process of preparing analysis reports for portfolio managers.
Actions
I met with the managers to learn about their process of preparing the reports. I gathered their suggestions.
I created an analysis model in Excel. I worked with the managers to test this model.
Results
It cut preparation time by 30%. Instead of 6 hours, it now takes 4.
Context
When I worked for PCQ Int., I was assigned to work with three colleagues to put a quality control system into place so the company could:
- obtain ISO standard certification
- position itself to win international contracts.
Actions
I met with the relevant departments to understand the quality control processes in place and to identify the changes that needed to be made.
I helped develop and implement the necessary improvements, created a guide and trained employees.
Results
- Product quality rose by 10%.
- The company was awarded the ISO standard certification. Then it won three international contracts.
In an interview, you can take the time to explain your achievements, as indicated in examples 1 and 2, particularly if the recruiter has asked you to say more.
Be brief in your CV, your LinkedIn profile and your positioning statement. Limit yourself to a single sentence.
Reduced report preparation time by 30% by creating an analysis model tailored to the needs of the portfolio management team.
Helped implement ISO standard X, resulting in a 10% improvement in product quality and the company winning three new international contracts.
Highlight achievements you’re proud of
Write about the moments in your life when you felt the most proud, such as when you finished a marathon or were congratulated by your boss.
Explore various aspects of your life: work, hobbies, studies, extra-curricular activities, etc. Dont just stop at your work-related achievements.
Try to determine if your involvement made a difference, such as the creation of a new website, a fundraiser or a department restructuring.
Then you can determine to what extent you made this change happen or contributed to it.
How to present your achievements to your manager sample?
How do I present my achievements to my manager?
You can present your achievements to your manager to show that you’re a valuable employee. You can use a letter to summarize your contributions and ensure that you receive credit for your unique, innovative ideas.
How do I tell my manager about my accomplishments?
This way, you can keep your manager informed of your contributions, challenges, and goals, and avoid any surprises or gaps in communication. When you tell your manager about your accomplishments, use the STAR method to structure your message. STAR stands for Situation, Task, Action, and Result.
Should I write a letter to my manager about my achievements?
Though you may talk about your accomplishments with your manager in person, consider writing a letter so that they can access all the information on a later day. Understanding how to present your achievements to your manager can help you show that you’re a valuable employee.
How can I Make my Boss feel about my work achievements?
Not many coworkers and clients are willing to do that, but this act of speaking kindly about your work achievements can completely change how your boss views you. For example, a client or coworker may email your boss, expressing their gratitude for: Results you achieved for them.
