I've seen managers sabotage their best employees because they didn't want to lose them. They do all they can to keep them in their current positions because they make them look good and they don't want to lose that, especially since most of them are incompetent as it is. I've seen many good people leave HON because of this. They hit a wall in their career through no fault of their own and they decide to take their skills where they'll be properly appreciated. HON loses many great employees like this, but nobody seems to care enough to do something about it.
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What is this "career progression" thing of which you speak?
Please describe this "career progression" thing of which you speak.
A bad boss is never the fault of the individual contributor. It's not my job to recommend my boss for a promotion. That's a$$ kissing and/or brown nosing. The difference between the two is depth perception. I don't do either one. And I don't go boot licking in the futile hope that my boss will promote me if (s)he is promoted. I had a great boss and I hit the glass ceiling between band 3 and band 4. I took my skills elsewhere and got a 95% raise and a principal level position... because I'm qualified for it and my new employer cares more about competence than "diversity" and virtue signaling.
Seen that at every company I have worked for.
The problem with this approach is that it is unsustainable for the long term. As a consequence it allows people with mediocre talents and abilities to rise faster up through the ranks than those who are much more able or qualified but otherwise are not interested in playing the toxic office game. These individuals drag the whole organization down with their mistakes and bad decisions and also tend to be more complacent because they know to some extent that their internal network of connections provides some layer of protection despite their mediocre performance.
Once they have settled in the cycle continues as they pull up their buddies, bootlickers, family friends etc with them.
This pattern keeps repeating like a cancer and ensures an ever more mediocre performance by the organization because it tends to promote loyalty over ability. In a downturn this lousy system also ensures that when cuts are deemed necessary it is often the cohort of buddies, bootlickers, and family friends who get to stay employed while the better talent gets the axe.
This is just a fraction of the problems that come when loyalty is promoted over ability. With this kind of atmosphere it is no wonder that morale is so terribly low and the talent has run for the exits. This is the kind of toxic environment where people will shake your hand with a smile but also keep a dagger behind their backs just in case. This isn't a healthy work environment... it's a game of thrones level of nasty...
instead of hard work and discipline we should focus more on office politics and licking the boots of people up the chain?
If career progression is the goal this is a tried and true recipe.
Or ... you could work your -ss off and be stuck in band 3... only one who knows how to do this role and forever unpromotable. Been there done that.
I had a boss that passed me over for several promotions. I saw the writing on the wall and posted for another position in a different department. Best move I could have made. Career progressed better than I could have hoped for. Take matters into your own hands.
This is a pretty pathetic attempt at gaslighting. You are suggesting that individual employees are responsible for having their own careers sabotaged by greedy and incompetent managers. On what planet is this considered normal and acceptable behavior? People are taught that hard work and discipline is what it takes to do well for themselves yet somehow it's their fault when the boss throws them under the bus?
So instead of hard work and discipline we should focus more on office politics and licking the boots of people up the chain? We are paid to simply do our jobs... not degrade ourselves for the benefit of someone else's ego. What happened to the system of meritocracy that we supposedly pride ourselves on?
No fault of their own? They took the job. They left the job.
Happens everywhere. Job one is to recommend your boss for every advancement.
If they move you have opportunity.
Talk to their bosses and say good things.
Depending on how your boss treats you says what jobs you talk about.
We have costumer reps all over the world.
Could be toulouse , or could be xian.