The Peter Principle
The Peter Principle was first introduced by Canadian sociologist Laurence Johnston Peter in a humoristic book describing the pitfalls of bureaucratic organizations. The original principle states that "in a hierarchically structured administration, people tend to be promoted up to their level of incompetence" . The principle is based on the observation that in such an organization new employees typically start in the lower ranks, but when they prove to be competent in the task to which they are assigned, they get promoted to a higher rank.
The net result is that most of the higher levels of a bureaucracy will be filled by incompetent people who got there because they were quite good at doing a different – and usually easier – task than the one they are expected to do.
The Peter Principle applies too well to software development organizations. Senior software developers who excel at designing and/or coding software get promoted to, you guessed it, a management position. However, a management role doesn't require you to be a technology whiz, but rather an expert at managing people and project schedules.
Not all developers turn out to be incompetent managers. As a matter of fact, I'd go as far as claiming that the best software development and project managers I've ever worked with previously held senior technical positions. Promoting technology enthusiasts to a management position is therefore not necessarily a bad practice, but please proceed with caution.
Change Their Role, Not Their Salary
Let's get real. Not too many software developers will refuse a management position when it comes with a $10,000 to $25,000 raise. However, some would think about it twice if the promotion strictly represented a job description change.
I've always been of the opinion that for someone to do a great job, they must be passionate about it. If all they're interested in is the extra cash, then they're not the right person for the job – and your company will suffer because of it. Not only will you end up with a bad manager, you will lose your best developer.
When promoting someone to a management position, don't offer him or her an immediate pay increase. They've proven themselves as a developer. Now, let them prove themselves as a manager. Only once they've demonstrated great management skills should they get the well-deserved pay increase.
Give Them A Way Out
Bureaucracies make it very difficult to demote someone to a lower rank, even if that person would be much better fitted and happier in that lower position. Whether you feel the developer is not fit for the job or the developer him/herself realizes that he/she would rather go back to writing code, make sure they have an easy way out.
Offer the new manager a probation or trial period. During this probationary period, evaluate his/her job performance, work behavior, and attitude. If you don't feel the employee is fit for the job, or likewise, if the employee is not happy about his/her new role, reassign them to their development position.
Hire For Attitude, Train For Skills
If you do come across a senior developer that has the right mind-set to become a manager, give them the opportunity to learn the necessary management skills. Individuals who are simply thrown in a management position with little or no training typically copy someone who formerly managed or supervised them. Unfortunately, imitating someone else's style rarely leads to success.
If you have a training budget, you're in luck. You can bring in a professional trainer, send your employee on a training course, or even financially support them should they choose to go back to graduate school and get an MBA. Unfortunately, in their effort to reduce costs, most high tech companies have cut their training budget, leaving you with little or no cash.
Is there anything that can be done? Fortunately, yes. The untrained individual can read management books or even attempt to obtain some do-it-yourself training. While those options don't compare to graduate studies, they are great cost-effective alternatives.
More On The Peter Principle
While the Peter Principle was initially introduced as a humoristic concept, it's a very common problem in today's high tech organizations. If you'd like to read more on the subject, I recommend "The Peter Principle" by Laurence Johnston Peter, or "First, Break All The Rules" by Marcus Buckingham and Curt Coffman , which devotes an entire chapter to this topic.
This article was originally published on www.gantthead.com.