Category: Diversity & Culture: Leadership in the Context of Difference

The Realities of Management Promotion, CCL Press, 1994

Marian N. Ruderman and Patricia J. Ohlott

Promotions are among the most significant rewards a manager can receive. They are also important events for an organization. Yet little is known about what goes into the actual promotion decision. This report documents a study of how the promotion decisions of senior-level employees in three Fortune 500 companies were actually made. A clearer picture is gained through interviews with those involved in the process and through access to performance appraisals and succession-planning documents.

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(See Table of Contents Below)

Format	ISBN #	Stock #	Price	Quantity
Report	978-0-912879-88-8	157	$7.50 USD

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The Realities of Management Promotion, CCL Press, 1994

Acknowledgments	vii
Introduction: Comparing Statements About Promotion to How Promotions Actually Occur	1
Methodology	2
Statement 1: Promotions Are Based on Individual Efforts and Abilities	5
Contributions of the Individual: Preparation, Attitudes, People Skills, and Personal Attributes	5
Contributions of the Context	6
Opportunity structure	7
Promotions as signals	8
Long-term staffing goals	9
The Complete Picture: Individual and Contextual Reasons for Promotion	11
Statement 2: People Promoted Must Fit Established Jobs	12
Statement 3: Formal Methods Are Used to Assess Candidates for Promotion	13
Statement 4: There Are Multiple Candidates for Each Job	16
Statement 5: Promotions Have Uniform Characteristics	18
Developmental Promotions	18
Promotions in Place	19
Promotions With No Obvious Optimal Candidate	19
Promotions for Long-term Corporate Objectives	19
Promotions Resulting from Reorganization	20
The Reality: There Is No Such Thing as a Typical Promotion	20
Statement 6: Most Organizations Use Similar Criteria for Promotion	21
A More Realistic Perspective	23
Implications	26
For the Individual	26
For the Organization	27
For Future Research	30
Appendix: Research Method and Data Analysis	33
Original Inquiry	33
Identification of Decisions	33
Sample	33
Data Collection	34
Primary Questions	34
Data Analysis	36
Category- and interpretation-building	36
Presentation of results	37
Figures	39
Tables	44
References	49

Category: Diversity & Culture: Leadership in the Context of Difference

Table of Contents

Executive Summary