A TOPHEADS career assessment
20 questions, about 7 minutes. You will see the step where your promotion stalls: your result, next-level work, the people above you, or the ask itself. Answer by what has actually happened, not by what you plan to do.
It follows a promotion decision the way it is usually taken and shows the step where your case stops. At the end you get one of five levels and see your strongest and weakest side.
Six things, in the order a decision weighs them: a result that is yours, work at the next level, whether the people above you know your work, whether someone argues for you, whether someone can take your seat, and whether you have asked.
Mike Torchinsky’s 25 years in executive search, and research on how promotions are decided: at a large retail chain, managers’ ratings of “potential” explained up to half of the gender gap in promotions (Benson, Li & Shue); challenging assignments raised ratings of promotability beyond performance (De Pater et al., 2009).
Almost everyone thinks they have earned the next role. So the questions ask what has actually happened: the last conversation, the last assignment, the last two weeks off.
About 7 minutes, 20 questions. Your level is free; the full breakdown opens with your email.
One of five levels, from “No Clear Result” to “Promotion in Sight”, a score for each of the six areas, and up to three things that hold you back most.
Ask what exactly was missing and agree on one or two things to show by a date. A 2026 study of middle managers found that performance often drops after being passed over, less so where promotions are more predictable (Du, Li, Luo & Ma). So ask for the criteria.
Then it isn’t only about you, and the quiz says so. Growth may mean a wider scope where you are or a move to another company.