In my limited knowledge of HR and OD, there is this typical career path for employees. in whatever functional role (marketing, sales, accounting, IT, etc), the goal of moving up the ladder depends firstly on your mastery of the role's competencies. you build your expertise to become a better product manager, accountant, salesman, etc. then the opportunities start to funnel as you aim to be supervisor/manager of the unit. not all of you will become 'bisor'.
but if you aspire for the position, you will be evaluated on the basis of your technical expertise in the first place. and for some companies, such mastery is the only basis for promotion. you get promoted if you are the best of the lot in what you do.
then as supervisor/manager, you will realize that its whole new set of skills called "managerial" and "administrative"! and it has so little to do with your original craft or skills.
which is why most companies now do assessment of not only your techincal skills but more importantly, your leadership and managerial abilities.
in my years of being exposed to employees, i have seen that not everyone can become a good manager, a good leader. few actually do.
and that could be frustrating for a lot of young people who feel that their career has stagnated if they dont get the promotion.
i believe that line management should not be the only career path for people. and not making the cut, not getting that promotion does not mean you are less of an employee or a contributor.
i believe in a technical career path, an upward movement in the corporation based on sheer technical expertise and skill. more companies, i feel, are recognizing this and giving their employees the choice to pursue this path, and not just line management.
so even if you don't have the managerial skill or mindset needed, you can still grow with the company by being the best in your functional area. the end of such a path is something like the corporate expert and becoming "consultant" rather than "boss" or "manager". and that's still a major accomplishment.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
7 comments:
CC...CC, CC, CC (sabay kurot sa pisngi) one profound and insightful post as always.
off note...
thank God for your iPad that you get to update ur blog more often. hahaha.
very insightful :)
in this company where i worked,,, iba sila. Hindi niya binibigyan ng pansin yung mag matagal ng nanilbihan sa companya. They deserved to be promoted sana. Kumukuha sila ng mga supervisors and managers na wala man lang experience kung how the system is done. Kaya its very frustating to my part. And now I am active on looking for a job where I can transfer soon! and good luck to this company.
Hello CC. How are you? I have been silent for a while. But when i read this particular post, I can't help but comment. You are right that competition in the corporate world is rather steep. And as we climb the corporate ladder, our head is also brought nearer the chopping board. With higher position comes bigger responsibilities. When I was working in a top multinational corporation, I have been very competitive. Everything to me was competition. Even the simple presentation during the Christmas Party. I always strive to be the best in what I do. I used to work in the brand development division. Because of my exemplary performance, there was a year that i was promoted 3 times. Then my division was transferred in another country. and so did I. Competition there became steeper than when I was in the Philippines. There are now many work ethics that I refuse to follow because it is against my personal work statement. Until such time i lost the promotion to another employee. That enraged me a lot. And vowed to crush them all. I resigned. Built my own business. Now very successful and happy.
That is to say, that while the corporate world can give us good training, it can also sometimes limit our potential because not only are we promoted based on what we know and acquired skills but also of whom we know and how deep we know them! ha ha ha (not everyone may agree)
Happy new year!
--The Prince
@I.T. (nagpakurot naman ng pisngi!) yeah, when im not too busy, i just whip this out and blog away! thanks for liking the post!
@kirk i wish you well! that job is out there for you!
@jaycee thanks for readin' and commentin'!
@prince henry thanks for sharing! i will always hold entrepreneurs in high esteem. the corporate world is not always as professional and as just. but just think, if you did get that promotion, you'd still be slaving away in some office! now you are your own man!
CC: korek! im still a slave... but in my own office! my motivation then was revenge... now i grow up! other forms of motivation are welcome... very much welcome.
Quite insightful!! If you think you 'deserve' to be promoted, all the more reason you shouldn't be promoted. Skills should always be the basis and not tenure. I hope people frm work will get to read this, esp the mareklamo ones. Hahaha.. =)
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