4 Painless Ways to Tell Employees They Are Not Getting a Promotion: 3 Sample Phrases

Jul 14

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Telling an employee they are not getting a promotion can be one of the most difficult tasks a manager has to do. Being clear right from the start of the conversation can be the saving grace of this conversation. Here, we are going to provide you with some key tips and phrases to make the conversation between you and the employee painless.

How Do I Go About the Conversation About the Promotion?

To begin, the angst of having a conversation with the employee can lead to miscommunication and problems. The best thing to do before the meeting is plan out the conversation and what you desire to communicate with this particular employee. Here are some key things to review before the conversation.

Understand Your Employee’s Behavioral Tendencies

Not all employees will respond the same way to not receiving a promotion. If you can predict the behavior and response of the employee, you can best tailor the conversation to their benefit. Think about whether they would prefer a short conversation or a longer discussion. Think about how they respond to circumstances; are they more emotional in bad situations or angry? Think about what you know about the employee and their personal interests. Even something as simple as knowing if they are an introvert or extrovert can help form the conversation structure in a way that will benefit the employee and ease the bad news.

Be Clear at the Start of the Conversation That the Employee Did Not Receive the Promotion

One of the worst things you can do in this situation is begin the conversation too positively and make the employee think they got the promotion before you deliver the bad news. This format will make the employee even more crushed than starting with the bad news. Begin the conversation by telling the employee they did not get the promotion. Then, observe their body language and facial expressions to see if you need to change your initial conversation plan to tailor it to their needs at the moment.

Have the Conversation One-on-One

Make sure that the meeting will not be interrupted by anything, so allot a generous amount of time to have the promotion conversation. In doing so, the employee will feel like you truly care about them and want to have a discussion with them about the promotion. This is essential because the employee put time and effort into the application and interview for the promotion, so they deserve the same from you.

Don’t compare the employee to the person who received the promotion

If the employee asks why they didn’t get the promotion, keep the conversation focused on their skills and not the skills of the person who got promoted. At the end of the day, you want to encourage this employee to work hard, and instituting a comparison can be hurtful. Instead, focus on a skill that the employee can improve on, or if there was something more specific like an issue with a project, then let them know. Be transparent, but only in a way that will benefit the employee, not hurt them more. It might be better to even address this in a later conversation about goals for improvement.

3 Sample Phrases to Use in the Promotion Conversation

“Don’t think your effort in the application went unnoticed by those who reviewed it. You have excellent skills in the following areas: _____”

This phrase is important for those employees who will need some motivation and reassurance. Remember, honesty is critical in the conversation, so do not start the conversation with this. Begin by telling the employee they did not receive the promotion. Adding this in will reassure the employee that their application has been carefully reviewed and can help avoid questions and concerns about their application. Moreover, prepare the skills you want to positively address in the meeting prior to your conversation, so you can ensure they directly relate to the application and the employee. If you need help verbalizing the skills, use the ManageBetter Review Builder to assist in pinpointing phrases to use.

“Continue the strong performance in the workplace that you have had. Hard work does not go unseen, and if you continue to improve you will be a great asset to this company.”

A key issue that can happen after a promotion rejection is a lazy attitude in the workplace. If the employee feels that their work does not pay off, they will be unlikely to improve or work hard. Here, you are using this phrase to emphasize that the work quality needs to stay the same. Doing this will keep the employee on track towards their personal goals and will keep you from having another hard conversation with the employee. This phrase is not meant to promise the employee a promotion, but it is meant to encourage the employee that you recognize their hard work. This will make the employee feel valued despite being rejected for the promotion. Again, if they were being considered for the promotion, the employee has a good work ethic and high capabilities, so keep them on the path to success.

“I want to help you with your goal of receiving a promotion. Would you like to have a conversation about goals for your performance that can lead you to be a stronger candidate for a promotion?”

Don’t have the conversation about goals within the same conversation about the promotion rejection. Instead, ask the employee if they even want to have that conversation and if they do, have it at a different time. Then, the employee can take some time to process the rejection and you can take some time to prepare goals. You can use the ManageBetter Action Plan to prepare goals and how you would like to track their progress. Doing this will demonstrate to the employee that you are truly invested in their success, and this will motivate them to keep improving in the workplace.

Conclusion

A promotion rejection can be difficult for an employee to understand. Creating individual goals for the employee can demonstrate your support for their success. Be there to support the employee and ultimately guide them towards the improvements needed to be in a better position for the next promotion opportunity.