4 ms·

In my previous job, I progressively realized that: - I had been acting two levels above my paygrade for several years; - everybody assumed that I was two leve

by Yoric 5y ago

In my previous job, I progressively realized that: - I had been acting two levels above my paygrade for several years; - everybody assumed that I was two levels above my paygrade; - considerable turnover in managers (on average, without changing team often, I changed manager about 1.2 times per year) meant that nobody realized that there was a problem; - attempting to actually get to the next paygrade brought a reaction of "well, if he's not at the next paygrade, there must be a reason, right?" Clearly, the ladder was broken. That's one of the many reasons for which I eventually left that job.

gonzo41 5y ago
I has this happen to me. My org had a set of promotion opportunities that went to a cohort of engineers who'd also been gamed into working above level but for a longer time. All my feedback was along the lines of "you're great, but next time" When I, and about 15 others left over the same two week period as the results of those promotions were made public it was a BIG shock to the biz. Sadly I hear they are just blaming culture at the lower levels rather than the HR team who do this.
- sokoloff 5y ago
  If your HR team is deciding engineering promotions, stop looking for the problem; you found it. HR is welcome to attend/audit the process, give statistical analysis, check for biases, advise on how to handle underperforming employees, give compensation band advice, and execute the promotion decisions the technology group decides. But if they’re the ones deciding, you need to change your company (or change companies).
  - gonzo41 5y ago
    We'll that's already happened for me. But the issue at core was that HR controlled the pace of promotions etc. But it didn't likewise keep control over the work that would be pushed onto people.
alisonkisk 5y ago
cableshaft 5y ago
> on average, without changing team often, I changed manager about 1.2 times per year I had a three year period where that kept happening. I was already doing the job of my former boss, but their boss kept switching out and the new guy didn't know who I was and I had to prove my worth all over to them. Happened three times during that time period. After pushing for two review cycles to get a promotion and being told "not yet, maybe next time", I finally left. I won't waste my time on that again. If my manager gets swapped out on me there's a decent chance I'll start looking to leave too, because as you say, the ladder was broken above me. If I have to prove myself to someone all over again, I might as well switch jobs an get a raise while I'm at it.

by Yoric 5y ago

gonzo41 5y ago

I has this happen to me. My org had a set of promotion opportunities that went to a cohort of engineers who'd also been gamed into working above level but for a longer time. All my feedback was along the lines of "you're great, but next time" When I, and about 15 others left over the same two week period as the results of those promotions were made public it was a BIG shock to the biz. Sadly I hear they are just blaming culture at the lower levels rather than the HR team who do this.

sokoloff 5y ago
If your HR team is deciding engineering promotions, stop looking for the problem; you found it. HR is welcome to attend/audit the process, give statistical analysis, check for biases, advise on how to handle underperforming employees, give compensation band advice, and execute the promotion decisions the technology group decides. But if they’re the ones deciding, you need to change your company (or change companies).
- gonzo41 5y ago
  We'll that's already happened for me. But the issue at core was that HR controlled the pace of promotions etc. But it didn't likewise keep control over the work that would be pushed onto people.

alisonkisk 5y ago

cableshaft 5y ago

> on average, without changing team often, I changed manager about 1.2 times per year I had a three year period where that kept happening. I was already doing the job of my former boss, but their boss kept switching out and the new guy didn't know who I was and I had to prove my worth all over to them. Happened three times during that time period. After pushing for two review cycles to get a promotion and being told "not yet, maybe next time", I finally left. I won't waste my time on that again. If my manager gets swapped out on me there's a decent chance I'll start looking to leave too, because as you say, the ladder was broken above me. If I have to prove myself to someone all over again, I might as well switch jobs an get a raise while I'm at it.