Promotion Policy

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What is a Promotion Policy?

A promotional policy is a set of guidelines that states guidelines that define how and when an employee is eligible for promotion. An organization always wants to invest in those employees who perform well.

This policy includes a set of guidelines to be followed in order to promote an employee in an organization. This policy should be transparent and communicated well to employees to avoid confusion about who should be promoted when and on what basis,

Promotion policy also defines which employees should be promoted and which should be kept under a performance plan to ensure uniform growth of every employee in the organization.

Promotion Policy Elements

Employees are promoted in the organization based on their performance and workplace conduct.

Acceptable criteria for promotion are:

1. Experience in that particular job role

Before promoting an employee his experience should be monitored in the particular job role. Employees having more experience are generally preferred.

2. Performance level in the last two review cycles

The promotion of an employee depends upon his performance level in the last two review cycles. A timely review of employee performance is necessary to achieve organizational objectives.

3. Skill-set that matches with new job role

Every job role is different in various aspects. So before promoting an employee it is essential to ensure that the employee’s skill set matches with the new job role.

4. Leadership Skills

Leadership skills are a must to achieve steady growth in the organization. Before promoting an employee it should be figured out whether the particular employee possesses leadership skills.

5. Personal Motivation and willingness to change in responsibilities

The promotion itself brings more responsibilities on employees shoulders. An employee’s willingness must be assessed before promotion.

When can managers consider employees for promotion?

Promotion of an employee may occur in certain circumstances:

A job opening is advertised in the organization either externally or internally.
A position opens up in the organization and the organization wants to fill it internally.
An employee is consistently performing well and his manager deems them ready for the next step in career development.
An employee acquires some licensing or certifications.
( For example – An employee working at a executive job role may be promoted at senior job role if he completes some certification course like Management in Business)

Process of Promotion

An organization follows a procedure to promote an employee or assign a position that matches their skills and aspirations better.

Managers should follow this process:

Meet with employees to talk about their career goals and aspirations for promotion. Management should create career plans for their employees.
Identify the opportunities to promote one or more team members, if applicable. It can be possible by internal promotion or creating a new job role/ designation.
The promotion plan should be discussed with the HR of the company to talk about the new salary package and benefits they should present to their team members.
Arrange a meeting with the employee to ensure whether they are happy with their new position or not.

Promotion Policy Template

Policy Brief and Purpose

In XYZ Ltd (name of the company) the performance of employees is given utmost importance as promotion is completely based on the performance cycle of employees. The company provides ample opportunities to employees for their career development.

Every organization needs to specify its promotional policy. The policy should contain specific criteria for promoting an employee. The policy should be fair and impartial.

Scope

XYZ Ltd policy applies to all employees who qualify for the promotion. The employee can get a promotion only after completing ….. months probationary period and only if they are not put under a performance improvement plan.

Promotion may move you to a position of high salary, high rank and responsibilities. Employees are frequently promoted to jobs that offer high managerial duties.

Employees may be promoted in the same or different branch.

Policy Elements

In general, promotions will be based on employee’s performance and workplace conduct. Below are the criteria for promotions:

Experience in the job role
Qualified or not in the job role
Good performance evaluation report in last …… months performance cycle
Personal desire for a changed and more challenging responsibility

The factors listed above are unbiased from company and employee perspectives because they can all be verified.

XYZ Ltd (name of the company) states that no employee should be promoted based on a person’s subjective opinion. It should be completely based on the performance of the employee.