Promotion, Transfer, Demotion

 

Promotion

Advancement within an organisation is ordinarily labeled as promotion which involves a change from one job to another that is better in terms of status and responsibility. Ordinarily, the change to the higher job is accompanied by increased pay and privileges, but not always. The term ‘dry promotion’ refers to an increase in responsibility and status without any increase in pay.

Types of Promotion

On the basis of Factors involved

1. Horizontal promotion
This type of promotion includes an increase in responsibilities, pay and change in designation. However, the employee doesn’t shift the job classification. For example, a lower division clerk may be promoted as upper division clerk with same job assignment and responsibility.

2. Vertical promotion
In this type of promotion, an employee is moved to higher level in the hierarchy. This involves increase in pay, status and responsibilities.
For example, superintendent becomes departmental manager.

On the basis on which decision can be made

1. Merit
Management personnel generally prefer merit, as determined by job performance and by analysis of employee’s potential, for promotion. In this way, they ensure that competence shall be the fundamental determinant of progress. If promotion is to be an incentive, the best performing employee ought to be promoted. When merit is taken as base for promotion efficiency is ensured in the organization.

Advantages
i. It motivates competent employees to work hard and acquire new skills.
ii. It helps to maintain the efficiency of the organization by recognizing talent and performance.
iii. It helps to attract and retain young and promising employees in the organization.

Disadvantages
i. It is very difficult to judge merit and subjective judgment is involved.
ii. Merit indicates past achievement. It may not denote the future potential and past experience of an employee.
iii. When young employees are promoted over older employees, the old and experienced people may leave the organization.
iv. Old employees feel insecure.

2. Seniority
Distinguishing among persons on the basis of seniority is as old as civilization itself. Seniority is widely recognized in all types of organizations: military, government and business organization. However, the extent to which promotions should be based on seniority is always an area of dispute between employee’s unions and management. Seniority can be defined as the length of recognized service in an organization. Seniority and experience are not necessarily equivalent, although they may be generally associated. Experience measured in years has little value except as applied to particular individuals who make the experience meaningful in on-going situations.

Advantages
i. It is relatively easy to measure length of service and thereby judge the seniority of an employee.
ii. It is an objective criteria owned there is no scope for favouritism. Therefore, it creates a sense of security among employees and avoids grievances and conflicts arising from promotion decisions.
iii. It provides a sense of satisfaction to senior employees and is in line with the India culture of respecting seniority in all walks of life.

Disadvantages
i. The assumption that length of service indicates talent in not valid. Beyond a certain age a person may not learn. So oldest is not always the ablest.
ii. In this system the performance (worth) and potential of an individaul s not recognized. Therefore it demotivates the youth employees who are talented.
iii. This system kills ambition and zeal to improve because everybody will be promoted without improvement.