Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

It’s great to have career ambitions, but it’s equally normal to not have the entire path mapped out or know exactly what will set you apart yet.

Luke Lyons, CGMA®, treasury manager in Group Corporate Treasury at Lloyds Banking Group, saw himself as manager and built a plan to get there — it involved earning a qualification that combined both technical finance and leadership skills.

It felt like the right foundation for the kind of roles I wanted to grow into, Luke said.

Building your career is about more than technical finance knowledge; it’s also about building the communication, leadership, confidence, and business skills that help you create lasting impact.

To move beyond your first role, start with a simple progression plan that gives you direction — a way to build skills, experiences, and confidence that move you closer to your goals over time.

What does career progression look like to you?

As you think about your career trajectory, ask yourself:

Where do you see yourself in three to five years?
What responsibilities and tasks appeal to you?
Do you see yourself leading people, becoming a specialist, or influencing business decisions?

Consider your current skills, strengths, experiences, and qualifications and how they fit into your answers. This may reveal some gaps between where you’re currently at and where you want to go — and that’s perfectly normal.

Those gaps are growth opportunities and help you chart your next steps. Use them to determine the leadership, business, communication, and other skills you’ll need to hit your target role.

Focus on learning

The most important part of your advancement is learning, and these opportunities can take many forms.

Courses and qualifications, like the Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA) qualification, deepen your expertise — the additional education expands foundational knowledge. Real-world opportunities like stretch projects, work placements, apprenticeships, or cross-functional work give you a taste of new-to-you responsibilities and maybe a chance to apply what you’ve learned in courses.

Applying what I was learning directly into my roles made the content stick and reduced the pressure, Luke said.

Networking, mentoring, presenting at meetings, working with senior colleagues, or contributing to projects outside your team provide additional exposure to roles you’re interested in.

Luke opted for an apprenticeship to complete his qualification and progressed through four different roles at Lloyds Banking Group during that time.

I got involved in the wider apprenticeship space, too, sitting on Kaplan’s shadow board, supporting programme development internally, and being named LBG’s CGMA Apprentice of the Year 2024,” Luke said. “The journey finished on a high when I became the world’s highest achiever in my final exam.

Luke’s success didn’t happen overnight — four years of progress since starting in 2020.

Set a timeline and adjust your plan

Rather than setting a generic goal of “become a finance director”, set short-term milestones instead. They could be:

In six months: Lead a project.
In 12 months: Present to senior leaders.
In 18 to 24 months: Earn a qualification or promotion.

The specified times allow you to build your plan and give you something more concrete to aim for.

Closing the gap between where you want to go and where you are today

Growing your career starts by knowing where you want to go, honestly assessing where you are today, and taking intentional steps to close the gap between the two. Remember, experience, leadership development, networking, and continuous learning all contribute to long-term success.

Just like your interests and opportunities, career plans evolve. Review and adjust your plans regularly.

Luke’s best advice for anyone yearning for career progress is to

say yes to opportunities as they come up — roles, projects, networks, mentoring, anything that stretches you. Stay curious, apply what you learn straight away, and trust that the effort compounds over time, one exam at a time.

Ready to move from numbers producer to trusted business partner? Browse the career platform MyFuture to connect with more first-person stories, insights into accounting roles, guidance on building in-demand skills, and so much more.

Building the skills that drive career progression

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What does career progression look like to you?

Focus on learning

Set a timeline and adjust your plan

Closing the gap between where you want to go and where you are today

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