Promotion

Many employees have the ambition to advance into positions of greater responsibility within their organization. As organizations grow and senior employees retire, positions open up in the organization into which employees can be promoted. If the number of openings match the aspirations of eager employees, everyone is happy. The problem is that this seldom happens. Advancement in an organization seldom comes as soon or as rapidly as aspiring employees wish. Nor do the needs of the organization always fit the skills and experience of these eager employees. In both cases frustration may result.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Promotion

Promotion has some positive dimensions and advantages. First, the opportunity to advance is a high motivator; as a consequence, the organization benefits by the work of zealous workers. Second, the organization benefits by the infusion of new ideas and enthusiasm as younger employees work their way up the organizational chart. Third, a promotion is a clear indication of the worth of an employee and an affirmation of his or her good performance. It gives an employee the opportunity to grow and use his or her talents to the greater benefit of all. Fourth, promotions bring with them increased earnings at a time when younger families have growing financial needs.

Promotion also has negative dimensions and disadvantages. First, as some employees are passed over in promotions, motivation fades and negativism or indifference may develop to the detriment of the organization. Second, while promotions bring youthful thinking and enthusiasm into the organization, there may be a loss of experience as senior employees leave. Third, the self-esteem of those who are not promoted may fall, and this may spill over into other parts of their lives. Failure to win a promotion may be seen by the employee, the family and others as failure in life. Fourth, some promotions require transfer to another location. If the employee has a working spouse, the decision to accept the promotion will certainly be influenced by the spouse’s ability to move also. If children are involved, the move can be traumatic for them. In some organizations, to turn down a promotion for family reasons eliminates the employee from ever again being offered a promotion. Finally, the principle of earning a promotion as a result of hard work is contrary to the theological principle of God’s assurance that we are accepted (saved) by our Creator without any merit of our own. The assurance of the grace of God is difficult to accept in a workplace where good performance is the key to promotions.

Unwise or Unfair Promotions

Up to this point, the premise has been that promotions come as the result of good performance. But what if that’s not the case? What if I am a member of a union where the contract with management clearly states that promotions will be based on seniority? A poor performer in my work group will be promoted ahead of me, even though she knows nothing about the job, simply because of seniority. To add insult to injury, I may be assigned to train this person. Is this fair?

Apart from union situations, my superior performance may be overlooked in favor of a less qualified worker whom my supervisor happens to like. Sometimes outside pressure is put on my supervisor to promote a poorer performer (see Office Politics). Or perhaps I am passed over in favor of a female, minority or handicapped person in order to correct the organization’s past discriminatory practices against such persons. In order to reduce costs, some companies promote junior, lower-paid employees at the expense of more senior, higher-paid workers. This practice can result in age discrimination suits brought by disgruntled employees who have been passed over. Not to receive a promotion for any of the reasons above, when one knows that one’s performance has been outstanding, can be dispiriting.

There are other realities at work that can be even more dispiriting. As organizations “downsize” (see Firing) or “right size” in order to reduce costs, entire departments may be abolished. Not only is the job into which I had hoped to be promoted gone, but my present job is gone. I am given the opportunity to accept a demotion into another part of the company or accept a special separation package and leave. A similar situation can result from mergers or acquisitions. The reality of life is that for many workers high performance and good experience do not result in a promotion.

Managing Promotions

Some managers, in an effort to get greater productivity, intentionally set up competition between two contenders for a promotion. It is quite commonly done at the top levels of business corporations. But regardless of the level in the organization, such competition can become destructive. The competitors can put all their time and energy into their work at the expense of family life and their own health. Such competition can even spill over into the defamation of the other’s character and competence. It can become so vicious that when the winner receives his/her sought-for promotion, the loser feels obliged to leave the company.

The Peter Principle says that people are promoted to their level of incompetency. There is a great deal of truth to this statement, but the fault lies much more with those who did the promoting than those who were promoted. Management can make a number of errors in the process of deciding upon a promotion.

First, it is difficult not to reward a star employee with a promotion into the first level of management. But it may be a mistake. The example most frequently cited is the promotion of a star salesperson into a terrible sales manager. While selling and managing both require people skills, managers help others to work effectively while salespersons do the work themselves. The same problem can arise in promoting research scientists, computer analysts, teachers, doctors, social service providers and many others into management positions. Management should not assume that the star performers will become star managers. Perhaps a mediocre salesperson can become a top-notch sales manager.

A second fault of top management is in not providing enough training for the job into which someone is promoted. Doing computer analysis is much different from managing computer analysts. In making such a transition, it is not only wise but a matter of justice to give the employee professional help in how to be a manager. It is interesting to note that the higher one goes in an organization, the less training one gets in a promotion. It is assumed that the senior vice president in the law department will know how to be an effective president. Sometimes this is true, sometimes not.

Persons moving into their first management position encounter the problem of how to deal with their former peers. As one among equals in their work group, these new managers used to socialize freely with certain members of the group. Some were very good friends; perhaps one was the new manager’s very best friend. In the new role the manager cannot have personal favorites. Will the group accept and respect the new role their former coworker has been given? And what about the best friend? Can the new manager frankly and openly address the best friend’s performance weaknesses? Will the new manager try to maintain the best-friend relationship off the job but lay it aside on the job? Will it work?

Refusing Promotions

Up to this point we have assumed that all workers want and will accept a promotion. Such is not always the case. As indicated earlier, if a promotion involves a move to a new location and the interests of a spouse and/or children must be considered, an employee may elect not to accept the promotion. At times this may happen in favor of retaining links with the local church to which one is strongly committed or from which one is presently gaining some greater benefit. More and more organizations are trying to reduce the problem by helping locate a job for the spouse at the new location. But depending on where children are in school, the decision may still be negative. While some companies blacklist an employee for refusing to move, wiser organizations recognize that talent is talent and what is “no” to a move today may be “yes” to a move in five years.

Some employees may reject a promotion because they are perfectly happy doing what they are doing. They like the 9-to-5 ritual where everything is fairly predictable and change comes slowly. They do their jobs very well and will continue to do so. Why spoil a good situation? is their reasoning. Some employees turn down a promotion because the new job would subject them to stressful situations. They do not want to be held responsible for the work of a group of people. They rebel at the thought of having to evaluate another person’s performance, of recommending pay raises and, perhaps, of firing someone.

Reflecting on Promotions

The Bible contains numerous accounts of good performance resulting in promotions. Genesis records the remarkable story of Joseph, who advanced from being a prisoner in Egypt to the second-in-command under Pharaoh as a result of his good work. Jesus’ well-known parable of the talents (Matthew 25:14-30; Luke 19:12-27) has the master promoting the slaves who performed the best in increasing the talents with which they were entrusted. The slave who did not perform well was cast out. At the same time, the Bible also clearly reminds us of the grace of God, a grace that is freely given, without any merit of our own.

For the Christian who is dedicated to a life of service, promotions provide the opportunity to use one’s God-given talents to greater good in the workplace. At the same time, the heavy influence of performance in the awarding of promotions can easily change one’s focus from what God has done for us to what we have done for ourselves.

» See also: Ambition

» See also: Competition

» See also: Drivenness

» See also: Office Politics

References and Resources

J. A. Berbaum and S. M. Steer, Why Work? Careers and Employment in Biblical Perspective (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1986); D. Braybrooke, “The Right to Be Hired, Promoted, Retained,” in Ethics in the World of Business (Totowa, N.J.: Rowman & Allanheld, 1983) 145-76; W. Diehl, Thank God It’s Monday (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1982); R. Mattson and A. Miller, Finding a Job You Can Love (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982); L. T. Peter and R. Hull, The Peter Principle (New York: William Morrow, 1969); R. E. Slocum, Ordinary Christians in a High-Tech World (Waco, Tex.: Word, 1986); G. Tucker, The Faith-Work Connection: A Practical Application of Christian Values in the Marketplace (Toronto: Anglican Book Centre, 1987).

—William E. Diehl