Our must-do career moves will propel you ahead.For Alice Rodriguez, the path to the top took six years and a leap of faith—in herself. "Early in my career, I had to step out of my comfort zone," recalls Alice, who is now an executive VP at JPMorgan Chase. "I'd heard about an opening for a bank manager, a position with lots of financial responsibility—something I wasn't used to." She wondered if she could handle being in charge of all operations, including reconciling the bank's accounts.Alice decided to throw her hat in the ring for the job—her first profit-and-loss (P&L) position—and landed it.

"I grew up watching my mother take risks," she says. "She was an immigrant from Mexico who had only a sixth-grade education, but she grabbed every opportunity she could." With that job, Alice started to gain the kind of experience that now proves to be invaluable as she manages more than $30 billion in retail, small business and investment assets.

The 42-year-old Latina happens to be one of the few top female executives of color in the global financial services industry—a happy exception to the rule. Few women actually secure the P&L jobs that lead to managerial positions or to the executive suite. In fact, multicultural women hold less than a fifth of managerial positions, based on 2006 data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and just 1.7 percent of corporate officer positions, according to Catalyst, a research and advisory organization that aims to expand opportunities for women at work.

How can minority women get the top spot—or a better spot than they have now? The bridge to management and executive positions requires taking on critical, P&L-based assignments that make you responsible for producing revenue, overseeing a budget and other financial duties."Unfortunately, the number of P&L jobs held by women is still under ten percent," says Betty Spence, president of the National Association for Female Executives. "Landing revenue responsibilities requires a specific plan of action." The top women-of color executives and workplace experts we interviewed offer insights and strategies to up-and-coming multicultural women going after the P&L positions that will help them get ahead.

ABSORB THE COMPANY CULTURE

"As soon as you join a company, familiarize yourself with the DNA of the firm: how decisions are made, what the unspoken rules are, all the small things that are big things in the company culture," says Kim Nelson, an African-American VP at General Mills and president of the Snacks Unlimited Division. "That will help you learn what to do to get the experience that will put you in line for critical assignments." For women, and particularly for women of color, experts say, if a boss feels you need to be bulletproof, then you may need something extra, like an added educational credential or specialized work experience.

TAKE RISKS It's no surprise that many say they feel a need to constantly prove their abilities—and their worth—at work. "Women of color face a double exclusion in the workplace based on their gender and their race or ethnicity," says Katherine Giscombe, senior director of research at Catalyst. "It can often be hard for a senior white man to see a woman of color as someone who can mind the store." Multicultural women may be contributing to that perception, and doing themselves a disservice in the process, by being too tentative in their careers. "Generally speaking, men are more willing to take critical leaps, while women tend to stop and assess a situation before making a move," notes Carol Evans, CEO and founder of Working Mother Media. Many executive women of color recall having to overcome such career caution. "My first opportunity for a pivotal assignment came to my attention because two of my mentors encouraged me to go for it," Kim says. "I was working hard, patiently waiting my turn. Like many women, I wasn't geared toward self-promotion. I lacked the confidence. But I learned a valuable lesson: You may get it, or you may not, but why not show interest?"

CREATE A NETWORK Since women of color have less access to networks, which are key to all sorts of contacts, including mentors and sponsors, they need to find ways to make connections. Having a senior executive as a sounding board, guide or personal champion is important for ambitious minority women. Evans notes that women have to build a "new girls' network" where they can forge relationships, just the way the old boys' clubs have operated for years. Adds Giscombe: "The lack of a mentor or sponsor, the lack of access to highly visible assignments and the lack of role models of the same race—all these are interconnected, and women of color need to overcome them to advance."

BUILD A SUPPORT TEAM Once you establish a relationship, maintain it, says Alice. "Be proactive about meeting regularly with people who can help you, and tell them your goals," she says. "Think about it as an investment in yourself over a period of time." Nurture these work relationships with coaches, mentors and sponsors, even if you don't think you have much in common. "You can't expect someone to sponsor you if that person doesn't have direct knowledge of you," notes Kim. "Find those points of commonality during occasions where there may be informal mingling. Others may be talking about things you aren't familiar with, such as golf, but you can talk about topics you might have in common, such as family." And make sure you have as many people as you can in your corner. "The needs of women of color are very multifaceted," Giscombe points out. "It would be difficult for one individual to fill all the needs."

FIND SAFE HAVENS The challenges facing women of color as they climb the corporate ladder is a subject that comes up often at Working Mother Media's Multi-cultural Women's Town Halls, safe havens across the country where professional minority women can feel comfortable discussing difficulties they face in the workplace. Take time to find safe forums—and they may be outside the office—where you can talk freely about your career experiences and dreams.

BE RESILIENT A Catalyst survey found that African-American managers experienced a lack of respect for their authority, based on the belief that they lacked credibility. Subordinates went over their heads, and senior managers reinforced the disrespect by dealing directly with those employees. Another Catalyst survey found that Asian-American women were the group least likely to have a direct report, due to a perception that they were good contributors and workers but not good managers. Latinas also report encountering biases, such as accents making it harder for them to fit in. How to overcome such challenges? Understand the attributes that leaders share, and cultivate them in yourself. For example, women-of-color executives who are one to three levels from top jobs share certain characteristics, according to Catalyst. First, they tend to have high levels of emotional resilience; if they run into a negative stereotype, they find a way around it and move on. Second, they hit the ground running when it comes to career planning and discover early in their careers what it will take to be successful. And third, they have the ability to form positive relationships with colleagues.

TAP YOUR CAN-DO SPIRIT "I try to put things in perspective," says Alice. "Any challenges I face in corporate America are nowhere near what my mother faced as an immigrant with limited education and means." Drawing on the successes of family and friends who share your heritage will reinforce a sense of self, help you overcome setbacks and ignite a true can-do spirit.

WORK FOR THE RIGHT COMPANIES Of course, it's not all up to the women. Companies must be brave, too. Many managers throughout the country feel they're taking a risk when they promote a woman of color. Yet minority females at our town halls say they're eager to prove themselves. They crave mentors, plum assignments and real accountability from managers—all the essentials for advancing their careers. And that's exactly what our Best Companies for Multicultural Women are giving them. Our Best Companies, like Merck & Co., are not only brave, they're getting it right. "Our managers and employees work together to tailor a succession plan that includes women and women of color, and that may involve mentoring, identifying key developmental assignments and discussing employees' strengths and goals," says Deborah Dagit, Merck's executive director of diversity.

BE PERSISTENT Convincing your company to trust you and your abilities can take a while, says Kim. "For women of color, it can be particularly important to remain with one firm for a period of time," she says. "It takes longer to get to know us. We're crossing barriers that haven't been crossed outside the workplace." Alice, a mother of two and stepmother of five, knows firsthand the power of being persistent and having high hopes. "My mother taught me that the possibilities are endless," she says. It's a lesson that she's passed on to her own daughters. "The other day, the mother of one of my oldest daughter's friends shared something that touched me deeply," she recounts. "She said that my daughter told her, 'My mom has taught me that I can do anything. There are no limits.'"