The Peter Principle: Why don’t many people grow up in a hierarchical system?

We are glad to welcome you, dear readers of Valery Kharlamov’s blog! What do you think, is a person who has achieved success in one area capable of showing the same good result, doing something else, new to himself? Perhaps, but there is a principle of Peter, which is that a person will certainly reach a level in the hierarchy where he will be completely incompetent, despite his rapid career advancement due to professionalism.

What is this principle?

Substance

The essence of this theory lies in the fact that even a very successful specialist, gradually rising and receiving new positions, will be obliged to perform duties that he has not encountered before. I think you know how difficult it is sometimes to learn something new, and even show an excellent result in the end. So, every time he gets promoted, it’s going to get harder and harder. At one point, it will become clear to everyone that it is time to change something, because the whole system does not function because of it.

It is for this reason that we sometimes become unwitting victims of someone’s non-professionalism. We are sincerely indignant, not understanding how it was possible to employ a person who made such gross mistakes.

Let me give you a couple of examples to make it clearer.

Examples

The Peter Principle: Why don’t many people grow up in a hierarchical system?

Usually in retail chains, promotion is very common. Getting a job, say, as a cashier, a person has a chance to grow to a manager. So, the girl, who successfully copes with the duties of a hall worker, quickly and accurately laid out the goods, proved herself to be the best. As a result, she eventually received a completely new position — the administrator.

And for some reason, buyers began to come across low-quality goods. She also could not work with clients, resolving conflicts peacefully. As a result, she received a dismissal and a strong desire to no longer work in this area.

Or another example, the auto mechanic just worked wonders. In the shortest possible time, he brought the cars into working condition, even in those cases when others did not give a chance and offered the owner one option — to put his «horse» into spare parts. Due to the fact that there was no end to the customers and they had to sign up for a car repair shop weeks in advance, our hero was promoted and appointed chief foreman.

And here everything went awry, he turned out to be completely incompetent in management. Previously, it was necessary to pay attention only to the car that was taken on, but now it turned out to be difficult just to observe the work of subordinates. He was involved in the repair of each car, which led to delays and non-delivery of obligations towards customers. The workshop suffered losses until they removed him from his post.

And everything would be fine in both situations, if everyone did their own thing and honed their skills. But no, hierarchology implies that if a person stands still and does not move up the career ladder, then he is a “bad” specialist and employee.

Causes

The Peter principle is suitable for absolutely any system that involves the transition from a lower level to a higher one. Most often, managers, when they have a free place in the company, prefer not to take on a new employee. They promote the one who initially showed himself well and showed his ambitions. And like this, move him forward until he is able to cope with new responsibilities.

But there is an interesting point, if suddenly he fails, and he turns out to be completely incapable of more serious work, he will not be demoted. It seems to be quite logical to give him those duties with which he does an excellent job, but in reality this practically does not happen.

Do you know why this happens? Not every boss will be able to admit that he made a mistake and chose a person who by no means corresponds to the position. And, if he admits it, it is unlikely that he will be returned to the previous vacancy, because, in theory, the old position should be occupied by another employee. So, in most cases, everyone stays where they are.

The Peter Principle: Why don’t many people grow up in a hierarchical system?

Modern man tirelessly strives for success, he wants recognition and power. Material values ​​play a huge role in the life of almost everyone. After all, it is with their help that you can present to the world your wealth, development and peculiarity.

Therefore, rarely will anyone be able to voluntarily refuse a vacancy that brings a high income, even realizing that they are completely unable to cope with it. Moreover, he is unlikely to refuse promotion, and will be ready to take on a new role, without even understanding what needs to be done in it.

Peter Lawrence, the creator of this theory, believed that non-professionals are still removed. They are offered a job that is completely different, but allows them to stay at the same level in the hierarchy without moving from their place.

There is also the so-called “sublime kick”, when some significant vacancy, in fact, not giving power, but only nominally existing, goes to the layman, thanks to his acquaintance with the leader and other influential people. The consequences of such a device would be extremely unfavorable.

End stop syndrome

It consists in the fact that a person who has reached the extreme point of his development in the company realizes that he is not competent in this vacancy, or he guesses about it and tries to somehow correct the situation. She needs this, first of all, in order not to get fired and not to “fall” in her own eyes due to low self-esteem. In this case, she organizes a «substitution», focusing on other activities.

The Peter Principle: Why don’t many people grow up in a hierarchical system?

For example, it may require compliance with new rules by subordinates, which are completely inappropriate. This syndrome has an extremely negative impact on the health of such a person. Stress gradually deprives the supply of vital energy, which causes both depression and various chronic diseases.

The only way out, according to Lawrence, is a person’s awareness of his boundaries, that he is not omnipotent. It is necessary to try to explore his life attitudes and find another job where he has not yet reached the limit of incompetence.

Despite the popularity of this principle, it has been subjected to severe criticism more than once. For example, Cyril Parkinson argued that in reality what Lawrence described does not have a place to be, which is why the theory should simply be regarded as a joke, nothing more. He even devoted a book to his reflections and rebuttals, which he called «Peter’s Problem».

Conclusion

And that’s all for today, dear readers! If you are interested in this theory, then I recommend that you read directly Lawrence’s book, which he wrote in 1968, «The Peter Principle», it is easy to read, due to the fact that it is presented in simple language with the inclusion of humor and examples. Good luck and accomplishments!

I also recommend that you read the article: “The correct conduct of disputes and discussions with the help of Graham’s Pyramid”.

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