Find Yourself a Big Dog
A note about the impact of sponsors on career advancement
In 2012 I attended my first national research conference as an undergraduate student. It was the Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students (ABRCMS) which took place in San Jose, California. During the second day of the conference, I was in a room where Dr. Howard G. Adams was listed as a speaker. The title of the professional development session was “Mentoring: An Enabling Relationship that Fosters Professional Growth and Development”. In all honesty, I don’t fully remember the details of everything that was presented there. However, I still remember the voice of Dr. Adams filling the room like a lieutenant commander calling on his squad. His succinct but consequential piece of advice was:
You need to find yourself a big dog.
In an interview for thehistorymakers.org, Dr. Adams explains that as a student leader, he had the opportunity to establish a professional relationship with Lyman Beecher Brooks. Brooks was the president of Norfolk State University where Adams was an undergrad majoring in biology.
“[h]e had taken a particular interest in me. I wouldn’t have called him a mentor at that time, but he had taken a particular interest in me. […]
I got invited to little things. I might have gotten invited to a reception that somebody else didn’t get invited or something.”
President Lyman Brooks was a big dog. As Dr. Adams describes it, Brooks wasn’t necessarily a mentor of his but someone who had taken a particular interest in him and used his professional influence to get Adams invited to things he normally wouldn’t. President Lyman Brooks was a big dog opening the path for the young H.G. Adams. In other words, President Lyman Brooks was Adams’ sponsor.
Sponsors vs. Mentors
While some mentors can act as sponsors at times and vice versa, sponsors often play a very distinct but crucial role in your career advancement. Sponsors typically occupy senior-level positions and have a seat in important meetings. Moreover, sponsors usually display an excellent track record of leadership skills and their authority is recognized by others. These are big dogs in your company, and they have the ability to transform your career.
A sponsor can transform your career in ways a mentor can’t.
For example, even though women report having an equal level of mentoring support compared to their male counterparts, they aren’t promoted at the same rates as men. The difference-making factor being that men usually have mentors in more senior positions. The more senior your mentor is, the more likely he or she will carry the attributes of a sponsor. In discussing the lack of sponsorship of women in tech, Brenda Darden Wilkerson (CEO and President of AnitaB.org) summarizes the crucial difference between a mentor and a sponsor as follows:
“A mentor is someone who can give advice and guidance whereas a sponsor can actively help the woman achieve her goal by being an advocate and placing her resume on the right desks.”
In essence, after identifying the potential in you, a sponsor can dissolve preexisting barriers impeding your professional growth by just making a few phone calls.
That’s the power of having a big dog by your side. It might be difficult for you to simply walk into certain places, but a sponsor can open those doors for you.
From sponsors to champions of your initiatives
Developing a relationship with a potential sponsor opens a direct communication channel to share your ideas and initiatives. In fact, you can initiate organization-wide changes by having your sponsor be your voice at the table. This level of influence is always an aspirational goal for ambitious professionals, but one that is hard to attain. However, having a sponsor by your side facilitates this process in part because it boosts your credibility; your mission becomes their mission as well. Therefore, having a sponsor as a champion of your initiatives can be crucial for your career advancement.
Find yourself a big dog.
