Peter Principal
Loosely defined, the "Peter Principal" means promoting talented employees one step beyond their capabilities. This happens because the performance review (PfR) process is not used correctly.
If an organization and it's supervisors haven't a good concept of how to utilize talent, the PfR is considered a "necessary evil" or "just get it done". The Christian supervisor shouldn't get caught up in that kind of mind set. Psalm 15:1-2 - "Lord, who shall abide in thy tabernacle? Who shall dwell in thy holy hill? He that walketh uprightly, and worketh righteousness, and speaketh the truth in his heart."
Done well, a PfR can help a talented employee be promoted. It can be a guide for bringing that employee to his/her full potential. It can lay out work history and on-the-job performance. It can show strengths and areas for needed training. It can provide encouragement and incentive. It can show poor performance due to lack of talent in that certain area or lack of initiative.
It is very difficult to gauge why an employee is not doing well on the job or just how far to promote. Are they promotable? Just because they are doing really well or really poor at one position, does that mean a career make or break? A very well documented PfR is the only way to see into these small things that make the big picture. It is the responsibility of the immediate supervisor to document performance throughout the year (as it happens), share that information with the employee (in real time) and make sure it is honestly recorded on the PfR.
I base the supervisor's responsibility on honesty. Employees will be surprised and grateful for an honest PfR. If it is used to give an employee the opportunity to improve, to give direction, and to allow full potential, it is a blessing. If it is used to give deserved and just discipline, to move out of a position, or to keep an employee from experiencing the "Peter Principal", it is just as much of a blessing. It is a blessing because of the honesty involved. Either way it provides the employee a chance to make choices about their career, their behavior, and their employment.
Read Psalm 15: 1-2 again - it is the basis of how we should approach the PfR. With an obligation not only to the employee and our employer, but a primary obligation for fulfilling one of God's purposes for us in our position as supervisor. Enter into the process with prayer for honesty and a willingness to honor God through your efforts. Consistently striving for this honesty will honor your employees' performance by placing them in the correct place for this period of employment. It will prepare them for their future jobs by recording a road map of their past, current and future. It's not just a task to get out of the way, it is one of your best tools.
If an organization and it's supervisors haven't a good concept of how to utilize talent, the PfR is considered a "necessary evil" or "just get it done". The Christian supervisor shouldn't get caught up in that kind of mind set. Psalm 15:1-2 - "Lord, who shall abide in thy tabernacle? Who shall dwell in thy holy hill? He that walketh uprightly, and worketh righteousness, and speaketh the truth in his heart."
Done well, a PfR can help a talented employee be promoted. It can be a guide for bringing that employee to his/her full potential. It can lay out work history and on-the-job performance. It can show strengths and areas for needed training. It can provide encouragement and incentive. It can show poor performance due to lack of talent in that certain area or lack of initiative.
It is very difficult to gauge why an employee is not doing well on the job or just how far to promote. Are they promotable? Just because they are doing really well or really poor at one position, does that mean a career make or break? A very well documented PfR is the only way to see into these small things that make the big picture. It is the responsibility of the immediate supervisor to document performance throughout the year (as it happens), share that information with the employee (in real time) and make sure it is honestly recorded on the PfR.
I base the supervisor's responsibility on honesty. Employees will be surprised and grateful for an honest PfR. If it is used to give an employee the opportunity to improve, to give direction, and to allow full potential, it is a blessing. If it is used to give deserved and just discipline, to move out of a position, or to keep an employee from experiencing the "Peter Principal", it is just as much of a blessing. It is a blessing because of the honesty involved. Either way it provides the employee a chance to make choices about their career, their behavior, and their employment.
Read Psalm 15: 1-2 again - it is the basis of how we should approach the PfR. With an obligation not only to the employee and our employer, but a primary obligation for fulfilling one of God's purposes for us in our position as supervisor. Enter into the process with prayer for honesty and a willingness to honor God through your efforts. Consistently striving for this honesty will honor your employees' performance by placing them in the correct place for this period of employment. It will prepare them for their future jobs by recording a road map of their past, current and future. It's not just a task to get out of the way, it is one of your best tools.
posted by Diane Gibson at
3:24 AM
