Be Transparent When Telling an Employee They Didn’t Get the Promotion
Bonnie Low-Kramen
Award-winning trainer of C-Suite Assistants | TEDx Speaker | 2023/24 Top 100 Global HR Influencer | Bestselling Author | 32K+ followers | [email protected]
By Rebecca Knight for Harvard Business Review | April 25, 2018
It's hard to tell an employee they didn’t get the promotion they were vying for. Your goal should be to deliver the news clearly and with empathy. Start by validating your employee’s contributions and thanking them for applying. Avoid comforting statements like “Next time you’ll get the job,” which make promises you may not be able to keep. Be prepared to explain why they didn’t get it — for example, did they lack a certain experience, discipline, or skill set? Share how the decision was made, too. While the employee may not be happy with the outcome, it’s important that they know the process was fair. Finally, finish the conversation by saying something like: “I'd love to continue discussing your career goals, so let's set up a time to talk about getting you the experience you need to advance.” And then be sure to follow through.
Adapted from “How to Tell an Employee They Didn't Get a Promotion,” by Rebecca Knight
Owner at Atchison Consulting
6 年The Peter Principal is a good example of a lack of transparency, where an employee is promoted to a new position simply because they were able to do well in the previous one and they were with the company long enough to qualify, but they prove quickly unable to handle the new one (i.e., rising to their level of incompetency) , because both the employee -- and their boss -- seldom ever have the guts to say the magic words, "I was better at the previous job. Put me back there." Of course, the same is true of professionals and management but it's said of them that they have reached a "Knowledge Plateau". In 50 years of crisis management I have seen it often.
Executive Assistant to Greg Bennett, President & CEO at Smith Douglas Homes
6 年Agree 100%! Honesty is always liberating in the long run, for both the giver and the recipient. Knowing where you stand enables realistic vision for positive growth.