Need and Importance of Promotion:
Promotion is an integral part of a career service. It has great significance for an efficient personnel system. Willoughby says, “The promotion is of vital significance from two standpoints, the securing of the employees most competent to fill several positions and the provision of that continuing incentive to good work for the personnel without which no system can be efficient. From his recruitment as a young man till his retirement as an old person, it is the chances of promotion which keep him in the service.”
The following points bring out fully the need for the promotion of employees:
(1) Promotion serves as a Reward- Promotion can serve as the best reward for the employees. Opportunities for promotion are a possible and potential reward for hard work, efficiency, and faithful service.
(2) Promotion is a means of retaining the best persons in service- By the device of promotion, it is possible to retain the most talented and efficient persons in civil services. It is a highly valued incentive that encourages employees to work continuously with dedication and sincerity.
(3) Basic human urge for advancement and recognition gets satisfied- A human being is an ever-growing creature. He wants progress and advancement in all spheres of his activities and interests. Everybody wants to progress. This basic human urge for advancement and recognition of civil servants can be satisfied by means of production.
(4) Promotion fosters a feeling of Belongingness- Promotion contributes towards the maintenance of continuity in the policies and programmes of an organization. Promotions always strengthen the securing of psychological unity of the employees with their organization. These create a sense of belongingness among the employees. The promotion system builds up sound traditions and conventions and adds to the goodwill of the government.
(5) Promotion increases the efficiency of Administration- The existence of opportunities for promotion to higher jobs and ranks impels the employees to work hard and be faithful to their work because this alone can help them to get promotions. Promotion potential becomes a source of efficiency in the administration. It encourages competitiveness among the employees and this leads to rapid progress and efficiency in the working of the organization.
(6) Promotion makes possible fuller manpower utilization- The best use of manpower is possible only through a sound system of promotion. The promotion system helps the process of bringing out the best in the employees. It acts as a good incentive for good work.
(7) Makes possible a better satisfaction of the material needs of the Employee- Finally, the promotion gives an opportunity to the employees to satisfy their increasing material needs and encourages them to give their best to the service. The employees can earn higher salaries by getting promotions. This acts as a big incentive for work. Further, the promotion also reduces the chances of occurrence of malpractices and corruption in the service in so far as it provides legitimate opportunities to the employees to work hard for earning ‘rises’ rather than to adopt illegal means for enhancing their incomes.
Essentials of a sound promotion policy:
Civil service is a career service. It offers lifetime jobs to capable persons. It provides opportunities to them for growth and advancement. However, only a good promotion system can make all this possible. A good promotion policy is absolutely necessary for the success of civil services.
The following are the essentials of a good promotion policy:
(1) The promotion policy must be well planned in advance.
(2) There must be a clear classification of the civil services.
(3) Grades in each service or class must be arranged in a hierarchical manner.
(4) The line of promotion and rules for promotion must be clearly laid down in advance.
(5) Instead of a single person, a board or committee should be responsible for making promotions.
(6) A systematically accepted method of promotion must be followed strictly.
(7) Employees must know that the vacancy for promotion is an opportunity, not a right and they must earn promotions in competition with each other.
(8) Senority should not be given excessive weight. The principles of seniority, merit, and efficiency must be combined. Several suitable devices like efficiency rating, examination, interview, etc., must be adopted to test merit for promotion.
Promotion is nothing but a process of filling up vacancies indirectly from within the service. It is an integral part of the career service. It helps competent persons to rise to higher positions in the service. Promotion opportunities act as incentives for bringing out the best in the employees. They encourage them to work hard and devotedly because only good service records and results can make them really eligible for promotion. In this way, promotion acts as an instrument of efficiency in administration. However, the promotion system can serve this objective only when it is a sound system of promotion based on a sound promotion policy and ideal principles and methods of promotion.
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