|
Hang in There, Chump |
All smiles and unbridled optimism, your boss tells you that a promotion
is right around the corner. Yessir, it's coming any day now. Of course,
you first need to prove that you can handle this new high responsibility
job--on top of your present job. So he dumps on you a walloping load,
gives you a wink of the eye--and disappears into the executive mist. You
toil away for months on end. Talk of promotion never comes up again. |
| |
Game analysis: |
As in The Pale Bonus (see page 00), the Pending Promotion Game is played
by bosses who feel it is their managerial prerogative to dangle carrots
in front of people. In this case, the carrot is a loftier position within
the company (and all that that entails). "It's a manipulative technique
some bosses play to get people to do their bidding, without having to
make a firm commitment," says William Krieger, Ed.D., a clinical counselor
and business consultant in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
|
| |
How to play it: |
|
|
Get specifics. As soon as your boss even intimates that a promotion
is in the wind, get him talking terms. Squeeze him into a solid agreement...Inquire,
"If I see the XYZ project to its end...If I bring in three new clients...If
I work Saturdays for the next twenty-one weeks--then I'll get my promotion?"
If he agrees, put it into a memo with his name on top. |
| |
|
|
Argue for authority. If it's too late for a firm agreement,
you may have to lean heavily on the boss to get your promotion. Argue
that getting the promotion will help you do the job more effectively.
Chances are, that's true. Without the title, the authority, and the
budget, you're probably facing real constraints. (Like people you allegedly
supervise laughing at you when you ask for something to get done.) The
boss is more likely to listen if your focus is on productivity and profits
rather than a higher salary and loftier title.
|
| |
|
|
Taste the baloney. If your boss continues to play this game,
you're a fool to tag along. "Making false promises is a pattern for
some bosses; it's a character flaw. Once you recognise this flaw, you
should stop taking your boss seriously, and don't bank on any of his
promises. To do so will only mean that you'll be continually let down,"
says Alyce Ann Bergkamp, an expert in organizational behavior at The
Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
About the Author
Russ Wild welcomes your comments about this article. You can contact
Russ at: RWILD@compuserve.com
Russ's book, Games Bosses Play, can be ordered at the 1st-Impact?
Book Store You can also find this article at 1st-Impact, Resumes & Careers
Strategies
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
