An employee is seldom treated as well as the applicant just described.
Let's consider some typical cases:
I Did It the Hard Way. Why Can't You?
Philip X. is a man in his early 20s. He joined the firm 21 months ago as a production specialist. His work has been excellent. Two performance appraisals, one after six months and another a year later, indicate that he has dug into the work, has grasped it fully, and is establishing fine relationships with associates. He has already made a number of suggestions for improving his work, and several have been adopted with good results. His immediate manager indicates that he is an eventual candidate for a management position. This evaluation has been discussed with Philip.
When Philip joined the company, he was quite clear about his intentions. He stated that he wished a managerial position within two years. He was assured by the recruiter at his college campus that, while the time was short, it was not out of the question. Everything would depend on his work and early attitude on the job.
Now that he is within three months of his target date, Philip decides to investigate the situation to make sure that his interests are understood and that he will be considered for suitable openings. He goes to the personnel office, where he is told that before the matter can be investigated his boss must agree to the discussion and exploration of new opportunities. He goes back to his boss, explains what is in his mind, and asks for approval to talk to someone in the personnel department. His boss, who up to this time has been cordial, cooperative, and supportive in every way, suddenly displays a different attitude.
"Now, look here, Phil," he says, "you just haven't been around long enough to get promoted. Why, some of us worked for 10 years before we even thought of a better job. It took me 14 years to make supervisory rank. You're too impatient. Besides, it's policy not to consider anyone for promotion until he's been with us three years." "But if I have the qualifications, why can't I be considered?" asks Phil. To which his boss replies, "Well, you sec, you don't have the qualifications. You're not mature enough. And besides, there are lots of others ahead of you."
Since Phil is young and capable, this answer is far from satisfying. His reaction is likely to be one of disillusionment with the company followed by a decision to look elsewhere. Even if the job market is unfavorable, his attitude toward the company, the personnel department, and his boss has suffered a setback, and his dedication to the interests of the firm is likely to follow suit unless something unusual happens to regain his goodwill.
What little loss there would have been-and in fact how great the attitudinal gain might have been-if Phil had been free to have his discussion with the personnel man to register his interests and explore whatever openings might have existed. Had he gotten a better job, his loyalty and commitment to the organization would have increased. A replacement would have been needed, but certainly the timing of the move would have been negotiable. If he had not been offered a position, at least he would have known he was being considered, and he would have seen more clearly what he needed to learn in order to succeed next time. What's more, the manager might still have a well-motivated man on his staff.
Carl F. is a district sales manager in his late 40s. He has been in his job for some 10 years, and he realizes he's going stale. Carl knows his way around the company, so he goes to his boss and tells him how he feels and that he'd like to look at some other jobs. Does the following reply sound familiar?
"Carl, why do you have to pick a time like this? You know what we're up against right now. The president himself has said, 'Push product X,' and you know our region is way behind its quota. If you'll just see us through these next six months, we'll talk about it again. Besides, whom do you have coming along to take your place if you walk out right now? Don't you think you owe us some warning?"
The first time Carl hears that speech, he probably takes it at face value. But when some emergency prevents his try for a new opportunity time after time the story begins to wear thin. There are legitimate emergencies, of course, and people can be quite indispensable for short periods of time. But from the point of view of some managers, there is never a good time to change or move men, and there's always some insuperable barrier to replacement. The odds favor Carl's remaining in his job and growing increasingly stale in his work. It is hoped that he will seek greater satisfaction and development off the job. But the situation represents a needless diversion of his energies from corporate objectives.
Why should one man have so much control over the growth and advancement of another? All interests suffer as a result of it. Carl's working career plateaus at what may be an unnecessarily early stage, his work does not receive the imaginative effort it deserves, the firm loses some of its investment in Carl's potential, and Carl's boss misses an important experience in managerial development. Carl may of course seek an outside position, thus saving his career, but the firm then loses even more dramatically.
Freeing the Man for Promotion-or Abandoning Him?
Harry P. is 55 years old. He has come up the management ladder a considerable distance but feels he could take on more responsibility. His boss says he is willing for Harry to see what he can find, so he "makes Harry available." This means he sends a note to the personnel office saying, "Harry is a good man. He would like more responsibility, and I believe he can handle it. Please help him find another job. In the meantime, please send me applicants to replace Harry so that I am not caught short." On the surface, all this sounds reasonable. But as Harry goes for interviews, he finds that almost everyone says he's looking for a younger man with somewhat different qualifications. His manager, meanwhile, interviews a number of candidates, and the day inevitably arrives when he finds a suitable person to replace Harry. Now what happens? Harry finds himself forced to say whether he's going to stay or leave. He gets the impression that he had better go. If he is fortunate enough to have an offer at all, he feels he should accept it whether or not it seems better to him than the job he's leaving. He regrets requesting permission to look around and may indeed end up worse off than he was at the beginning.
This issue presents the other side of the managerial control coin. Abandoning an employee, cutting him loose, forcing him into a position of no return is almost as bad as refusing him any freedom at all. Any promotion or career system needs to avoid both extremes.
These examples portray three of the greatest managerial errors in establishing promotion guidelines: enforcing administrative rules (based on precedent and past career patterns) that may prevent the most capable men from being considered for advancement; controlling all employee actions to seek new positions within the same firm; and granting the employee permission to explore for new jobs without supportive action and then cutting him off from his old position.
