Last week on Reddit, Inc. a woman posted about quitting her job after being told she was not getting the promotion she was up for.
She had been working as the acting manager for 18 months. Why was she passed over? The promoted person had no management experience.
"She has a family to support and you do not," the company said, in writing. 😮
Women used to be given this reasoning all the time. Men were assumed to be the primary breadwinner. Until women gained better equity and legal protection, this was accepted HR practice.
No organization can truly know what anyone's personal financial circumstances are. Family status should never be a criteria in promotions or any other job-related benefit.
Organizations should use objective, job-related criteria when making pay and promotion decisions. Transparent, rational decision-making builds healthier workplace cultures, and has the following benefits:
🎯 Increases employee trust that decisions are fair and merit-based
🎯 Strengthens employee retention
🎯 Increases discretionary effort
🎯 Reduces inherent bias
🎯 Reduces the likelihood of toxic political behaviors that occur when criteria for advancement is unclear
Thanks to Bored Panda for quoting my Promotability Index® framework as the reference point for the 5 key elements healthy organizations use to evaluate career growth-readiness. Click below for the full article (or PDF, attached):
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