Denied a promotion... (degrees, average, interview, degree)
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So I joined a company as a Sr. Manager in Supply Chain almost 9 months ago. The position was newly created, and I was tasked to directly lead a program. In my previous companies, I had a decent sized amount of team members to help drive all the initiatives; however, for the past 9 months I was a one man show.
Just recently, a new department was formed which was directly in line with what I was doing. I applied for the position (Sr. Director) and went to the head of HR and the hiring manager (Sr. VP) to express my interest in heading up that department. However, they decided to bring in someone outside the company and who had worked with the Sr. VP in the past. Oddly enough, he asked me to interview this person, and what I found was that technically I was miles ahead. In terms of being able to develop and deploy strategies, I was a step up. Objectively speaking, I admit the guy had more leadership experience than me. Here is the breakdown:
He is 50 years old and was a plant manager for several years and experienced in continuous improvement. However, he does not have any experience directly working on the technicalities of the field. However, he had folks who did have the technical background to help him. He holds a Bachelor's Degree somehow related to this field.
I am 37 years old and all throughout my career I've focused on the field I'm currently in; from a junior Engineer to Sr. Manager. I have several years of experience leading teams to implement change and drive improvements nationally. I hold a Bachelor's Degree in Mech. Eng., Master's in Reliability Engineering (directly related), received certification in this exact field, and hold a graduate certificate in project management.
I basically meet all the requirements and the "desired" field of the job posting for this Sr. Director role, while the other person does not.
The SVP has stated that he has absolutely no doubt I can lead the department; however, he wants more "horsepower" for this department and need someone with more experience leading a team. He stated I am probably miles ahead than the other person in terms of the technical abilities; however, he wants someone who can aggressively influence and change. HR and the SVP has stated that this person will probably move on in less than 2 years and would put be directly into this position; however, I am not that naive. By the way, I would report to this person and two other folks would be hired to form this team.
What are your thoughts in this matter? Am I still too young for this position? I'm very thankful that I am in my current position and content with my salary; however, in terms of satisfaction and fulfillment, I am very confident I can continue to lead this department.
HR doesn't run the company. Management does. You should have had a meeting with who is the hiring manager for that position. Going to HR isn't helpful, because they don't hire anyone. If it was your intention to be promoted into this job you should have been lobbying for it with upper management all along. This is how people get promoted in most companies to areas of increasing responsibility.
This is interesting. Often people who are 50 are complaining that are too old and aren't being considered for positions which would usually go to someone in their 30s. In this case, they must value this person's experience and leadership to do this job. A former relationship and/or recommendation for someone is certainly an advantage.
If I were in your position, I would be increasing my network of contacts outside the company. Get involved in trade related groups that meet and find out what else is going on out there. Because the reality is, this person at age 50 could be in that position for the next 15-20 years before they retire. I'd be looking for another good company which is going to experiencing growth if I was interested in coming in there to move up further up in the management structure. The reality of this situation is, that management might not view you as doing anything more than what you are doing now. They won't tell you that, because they don't want you to leave the company. But if you see your future taking on more responsibly you should be looking for that outside this company. Often it takes a new place to view you in a different light, and if you present yourself as ready for a promotion the new employer will view you that way too.
HR doesn't run the company. Management does. You should have had a meeting with who is the hiring manager for that position. Going to HR isn't helpful, because they don't hire anyone. If it was your intention to be promoted into this job you should have been lobbying for it with upper management all along. This is how people get promoted in most companies to areas of increasing responsibility.
This is interesting. Often people who are 50 are complaining that are too old and aren't being considered for positions which would usually go to someone in their 30s. In this case, they must value this person's experience and leadership to do this job. A former relationship and/or recommendation for someone is certainly an advantage.
If I were in your position, I would be increasing my network of contacts outside the company. Get involved in trade related groups that meet and find out what else is going on out there. Because the reality is, this person at age 50 could be in that position for the next 15-20 years before they retire. I'd be looking for another good company which is going to experiencing growth if I was interested in coming in there to move up further up in the management structure. The reality of this situation is, that management might not view you as doing anything more than what you are doing now. They won't tell you that, because they don't want you to leave the company. But if you see your future taking on more responsibly you should be looking for that outside this company. Often it takes a new place to view you in a different light, and if you present yourself as ready for a promotion the new employer will view you that way too.
Yeah I should have noted that I did go to the hiring manger and he is the one who chose this person that he worked with in the past and he's the one that stated that I am more than qualified but basically wants someone with a lot more experience in just plain leading a team. I also brought this up to my current boss, but it seems she basically has no control over the issue. I just joined the company 9 months ago so I still need to give a couple more years before moving on. I left my previous company a bit early as well, so this won't look good on my resume.
I also think a promotion for a new hire after only 9 months is very rare.
Good point. Our HR does have a "guideline" of 12 months. However, due to how my experience, background and education directly lines up, don't know if that has much weight. Even HR stated that I have a very strong case to make that an exception. It was the hiring manager who sat down with me to basically state that it sucks but we need someone with more experience in leading change.
Good point. Our HR does have a "guideline" of 12 months. However, due to how my experience, background and education directly lines up, don't know if that has much weight. Even HR stated that I have a very strong case to make that an exception. It was the hiring manager who sat down with me to basically state that it sucks but we need someone with more experience in leading change.
Sorry to hear. But I think the bolded text is the key. In essence, they have two strong candidates. And they chose the one with more leadership experience. And (to me) is also someone the hiring manager is more comfortable with as he's personally seen this guy deliver on that leadership aspect.
I wouldn't say you were "denied" a promotion. There is nothing that said - you are not qualified. You simply lost out to someone that they feel is better suited for the job. You can seek other opportunities elsewhere, or stick around and see how it turns out. You may also learn something from this guy. Or - he may not be as successful this time around (things are always different when dealing with people/corporate culture).
Do you guys think age of 37 is a bit on the younger side for a Senior Director role?
I'm sure if you looked it up - the average may be higher than that. But in the end, it's not just about age. This may be cheating - but there are a healthy number of tech executives that are not even 40 yet or were below 40 when they were running these firms.
Don't try to be a hot shot - expressing interest is good because it shows the org you have initiative but accept not getting the job. Don't be bitter about it or think that you deserve it more or are better suited than the guy they hired. Learn what you can from your new incoming boss. There is a lot more to management than technical knowledge and degrees.
It's not the age so much as the lack of experience. It would be pretty unusual to go from a Sr Manager role to a Senior Director role, esp. after such a short tenure with the company. And you were told where you were lacking - technical skills aren't the same thing as leadership skills.
It's good you expressed your interest. Keep doing that, and stay visible by taking on projects that enhance your leadership skills and make sure you appropriately promote your accomplishments. That will be a good thing whether you stay with your current company or also want to explore other options.
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