If you want to get to the top, it pays to plan your way up the rungs, writes David Wilson.
Still not chief executive? If you are giving your all but are stuck in middle management, you may feel resentful because success can seem like a lottery.
You probably know a clown chief executive scarcely capable of running a pub quiz. Likewise, you may know a clerk who deserves to be a captain of industry.
Doubt surrounds whether reaching the top rests on working smarter, for instance, or just showing up - which accounts for 80 per cent of success, according to the film director Woody Allen.
Being male boosts your cause, judging by recent Canadian research published in the Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization. Men are more likely to go all the way because they inflate their accomplishments, the research says.
Still, strategy matters. Three business high-flyers explain key tactical lessons they have learnt while climbing the ladder. The three cover angles liable to be neglected in a master's of business administration (MBA), although it still might be wise to pursue one.
Wise work
Study for qualifications with clout. Skip "stupid" certificate courses that do not lead to degrees or official university qualifications, says consultant and speaker Peter Taliangis, the former chief executive of Swan Districts Football Club. If you have worked in the business world for a decade or more and already boast one solid qualification, do an MBA or similar.
Roving eye
Keep an eye on the external employment market. The reason: you will rarely reach the level you want in your current company, Taliangis says. The path to the top will not come through your existing chief executive, unless the CEO is grooming you for the role.
Hunter instinct
Stay in touch with recruiters and head hunters, Taliangis says. Hunt for a new job at the next level every two or three years. Wait no more than five, unless you are set for promotion or you feel challenged by new in-house roles and are inching up the ladder.
Friends
Keep in touch with other job seekers, Taliangis says. Networking won him a referral to a job in an organisation he had never heard of but he says he loved the job and the experience.
Networking is key to progress, Taliangis says. "Individually, you know very little and very few organisations, but with your network you can reach many more people and organisations."
Digital launch pad
Network. Promote yourself and your brand face-to-face and online, deploying a range of social media platforms. Think Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Foursquare and Google+, which predicts it will have 400 million users before the end of the year.
Online is your starting point for new contacts, Taliangis says. Employers assess you online before you meet them. In an interview, ensure the way you look, act and talk matches your "online brand".
Top gear
Act and dress appropriately for the next promotion, says author and speaker Barry Maher, whose clients include the US government and the financial services giant Wells Fargo.
Ensure the people with the power to promote you start thinking of you as the kind of person who would fit the position.
Super-doer
Do the jobs no one else will, Maher says. Demonstrate your capabilities and capacity to grow. Never miss a chance to learn but, whenever possible, avoid "can't-win situations" and situations in which you are set up for failure.
Earning power
Prepare a list of your accomplishments, Maher says. "Not so much to show why you've earned a promotion or why you deserve it, but to showcase the abilities you'll be bringing to the new position. If you can assign a dollar value - how much the accomplishments on that list have earned or saved the company - so much the better."
Relentless
Be prepared to be fiercely competitive, says the chief executive of online finance guide Money Crashers, Andrew Schrage. When Schrage worked in the conventional corporate world, he encountered lots of cutthroat behaviour.
Some workers will do anything to reach the next rung, he warns. Grasp that fact and avoid assuming that others always have good intentions. "It's a rat race and you sometimes need to be competitive and aggressive to get that elusive promotion," Schrage says.
Restraint clause
Beware overdoing the zeal to succeed, Schrage adds.
If you turn cutthroat, your cruelty will likely only harm your relationships.
That, he says, spells disaster because, when it comes to nailing that elusive promotion or dream job, networking and relationship-building skills have grown to matter more than ever.
Hurting your colleagues will make them much less likely to "go into bat" for you when it matters. Or they may even grow actively bitter.
"This atmosphere will ultimately make for an unpleasant, lonely work experience for you," Schrage says.