Ready, Set… Promote? The Pros and Cons of Promoting Tech Talents From Within

Your IT organization is rapidly expanding and a leadership post has become available. You have two options: bring in fresh blood or hire from within.

Finding a perfect fit for your senior tech role is a real challenge in today’s modern labor reality. Companies are battling high turnover rates, and specialist roles require more and more specialized narrow-niche skill sets. There is already intense competition for top talent in today’s job market, and that’s before organizations start investing heavily in their corporate image. 

There’s no denying that hiring is an intricate process that calls for a flexible, ever-evolving approach. That is why most employers believe that it’s preferable to promote from within and hire new employees for lower-level positions and work to deepen their bench than to fill a leadership position with an external hire.

However, it’s not always effective when it comes to people management. It can backfire spectacularly if the promoted employees aren’t given the time and resources they need to succeed. Failing in a new job is humiliating, and no one enjoys working under a leader who doesn’t know what they’re doing.

So is promoting from within better or should IT companies only consider outsiders for new positions? Let’s take a look at the pros and cons of each approach.

Benefits of internal promotion

• Saving assets

It’s a given that recruiting, onboarding, and training new tech talents can be costly and time-consuming. HR professionals and recruiters devote a significant amount of time discovering and converting passive job seekers into active applicants. According to LinkedIn’s own research in 2022, the average time of the recruiting process in the United States is 41 days. 

Furthermore, after a candidate is won over they will frequently attempt to bargain for better pay than current employees. The requirement to provide a signing bonus or pay for relocation fees is rarely addressed by an internal promotion although it is common for new workers.

• Increasing retention rate 

Organizations should work hard to keep their best employees from going elsewhere. Top talents are more likely to lose interest in their work and quit if they don’t feel they have room to advance in their careers there. High performing tech leaders want to see the result of their efforts expressed in promotions and payment raises. 

Giving ambitious employees the chance to advance from within is a great approach to keep them focused and challenged. If workers can see that they may progress in the company, they will be more loyal to your IT organization as a whole.

• Boosting performance

Promoting from within can lead to increased productivity. Employees who are promoted are typically more motivated to do their best to live up to expectations of the boss. They also tend to be more invested in the success of the company, and as a result may be less likely to take time-off or sick calls.

On the other hand, tech experts who witness a colleague or friend promoted may be more engaged in their own career development and hence more likely to remain with your organization.

• Reaching full potential faster

Your veterans already have a solid understanding of the organization’s mission, culture and values. Business processes, paperwork terms, specific office equipment and company software were learnt by them a long time ago. They have a proven track record of success meaning the organization knows that they can do the job and that they will be successful in their new role. 

Moreover your workers have already established relationships with their colleagues, managers, subordinates and even customers. They have discernment, know who they can rely on and who they need to be cautious of. Therefore, IT employees who are promoted from within can achieve their full potential in their new role far more quickly than the new hires.

• Strengthening the company brand

Today company culture matters more than ever for the best players on the field. American recruiters have noticed a switch from focusing on selling a company’s perks to focusing candidate’s attention on the firm’s ideology and reputation. As Finances Online stated recently, businesses with well-known brands attract 50% more eligible candidates. While LinkedIn found out that 75% of candidates would not accept a job offer from a company with a bad reputation – even if they were unemployed.

A corporate culture that encourages internal growth is more attractive for qualified candidates than one suffering from high turnover. Promotions from within indicate that your organization appreciates hard effort and is always ready to reward it. Celebrating and recognizing good employees may boost your employer brand in the eyes of potential clients. Consumers are more inclined to support a firm that treats its staff with respect. 

Drawbacks of hiring from within

Despite all the positive aspects to internal promotions, there are also pitfalls that should not be overlooked. Considering the pluses and minuses will help you make a well-informed decision for each job opening.

• High risk of failure

Not all internal promotions are preferable to new hires from the outside. Despite popular belief, internal promotions fail more often than hiring from outside. About a quarter of internally promoted senior executives fail in their new post (which is still lower than the failure rate of an outside-hired employee). 

An internally promoted worker may have trouble succeeding in their new role for a variety of reasons. They may be unprepared for the increased responsibility that comes with their promotion or have difficulties leading colleagues they were once on equal footing with. Tech talents who are not provided with advanced training or tools to achieve at the next level in their career may struggle really hard to cope with new duties well.

• Limited options 

Let’s assume that you are a small or medium-sized business with twenty employees. A manager has resigned and you must fill the spot. You’ve got five excellent employees in your tech team with a suitable skillset. Do you truly believe that one of these five can perform the job better than absolutely every other candidate you might hire? 

If you post the role on several job boards, you will certainly receive several hundred applications. By going outside the company for potential candidates, you’ll have access to a far larger talent pool than if you were promoted from within.

• Lack of diversity

Every member of a long-established working team tends to share similar backgrounds, problem solving methods and perspectives. When promoting from within it becomes difficult for the company to embrace new ideas or different ways of doing things. Newly appointed leaders can often experience stagnation in their thinking and their approach to work. This can be a major drawback for companies who are looking for innovation and creative solutions. 

Bringing in new staff is a breath of fresh air for the team and the firm in general. They bring a whole new way of looking at the systems, processes and issues that your company encounters. Therefore, by hiring from outside, your IT business will have more diversity of thought and opportunities to grow.

• Two positions to fill

Although promotion implies recognition of high performers’ great job and bigger checks, it also means harder tasks, a lot of training, and higher level of responsibility. For some individuals being under such pressure is too much. They were professionals in their old roles, they knew all the ins and outs, achieved great results and enjoyed the process. Now the enjoyment has disappeared, but it’s too late to get their former job back. Will they stay?

Furthermore the promoted employee can take advantage of his new role and training but search elsewhere for a higher salary according to his advanced status. Even if it does work out, you are still losing a valuable employee from his ex-position and will have to invest resources into finding a replacement. 

• Damaging team morale 

Internal promotion can lead to high levels of competition among tech talents. Those who are vying for a promotion may be less likely to cooperate with their team members as they set sights on the same position. And what happens when one of them finally gets it? Those who were not promoted may feel resentment or even jealousy towards him and unfulfillment in their current positions. 

In addition, receiving a promotion might expose an employee to mocking from the coworkers, no matter if it’s done in good fun or out of envy. These types of jokes might divert a newly promoted employee’s attention away from their fresh responsibilities. It may also make things more difficult for HR departments if innocuous mocking turns into bullying or harassment.

No matter how long and carefully you weigh your hiring decision, it still can’t be the perfect one. Therefore, when choosing who to work with – a promoted longtime staff or an external candidate, – focus on potential opportunities. Pay attention to soft skills, the candidate’s possible value to the team, and cultural diversity. Consider the pros and cons of every recruiting circumstance. 

Still unsure of what recruitment drive is best suited to bolster your tech team? Rely on Bateman Fox to unlock the perfect solution. Allow us to guide you through the process and identify both internal and external candidates that will exceed expectations. Together, we’ll champion a decision that affords the utmost confidence and pride.