Promotion Decisions by Managers: A Dependency Perspective

Promotion decisions of 197 managers (63 males, 134 females) from a large not-for-profit organization were investigated using a dependency perspective. Both performance level and organizational connections of a subordinate influenced promotion decisions. Subordinate influence attempts had an impact on promotion recommendations only when a manager was aware of a subordinate's organizational connections. Potential subordinate turnover did not influence promotion decisions by managers. The implications of this study for both practice and research are discussed.