From a Past President
Transitions for Working People
ERNIE O. CECILIA, DPM PMAP President, 1999
Ernie is in the American Chamber of Commerce( AMCHAM), Employers Confederation of the Philippines( ECOP) and the People Management Association of the Philippines( PMAP) and other professional organizations. In 2011, he was given recognition as Diplomate in People Management( DPM) and voted“ Best Newspaper Columnist of the Year” by PMAP in 2011 and 2012. He was Executive Director of PMAP HRM Foundation, Inc. He is the President and CEO of EC Business Solutions and Career Center, Email: ernie _ cecilia @ yahoo. com
14 PEOPLE MANAGER I January 2013
The year 2012 ends with both good and bad news. First the bad news! The Mayan calendar ended on December 21, 2012, and many thought the world would end. The Mayans’ Tortuguero monument number 6 predicted an extraordinary galactic alignment happening on December 21 that precludes catastrophic events, marking the end of the Fifth Age which backdates to August 13, 3114 B. C. The good news is that the bad news is not true!
If you think that the only transition happening soon is from 2012 to 2013, look again. The yearend also marks many other transitions in the life of working people. Happy transitions include a new job, a promotion, salary increase, wedding, birth or baptism of a child, etc. Sometimes, there are also unhappy transitions – termination, downsizing,“ end of contract”, death and funeral in the family, etc. Incidentally, we bid farewell to PMAP stalwart Atty. Bienvenido P. Burgos who recently joined his Creator.
Guidelines
To some people, transitions come as a surprise. Keen observers can sense that something good or bad is coming. To people who think that childbirth is an emergency, transitions will always come as a big surprise.
Here are a few guidelines for happy transitions, particularly in promotions:
• Remain humble. If you get promoted, you perhaps convinced your boss that you have the potential to assume positions of greater responsibility. Your performance in your present job must have indicated that you have what it takes to do bigger jobs. Promotion is not a reward for doing your present job well. Don’ t get it wrong, and stop doing your old job!
• Enjoy the moment. Celebrate, but not for too long. Don’ t bask too much in your glory. Promotion carries with it a responsibility to prove your boss right. Don’ t fail him in your new job. If he has the authority to promote you, he can also demote you. Worse, he can fire you for gross neglect of your duty.
• Be nice to subordinates and friends. Continue to be nice with the people you worked with before your promotion. Some may hate you for passing them on your way up. Be gracious and humble. The people you meet on your way up could be the same people you’ ll meet on your way down. Trample on them when going up, and they’ ll beat you to kingdom come on your way down.
• Look at the bigger picture. As you move up, learn to see the forest, not just the trees. People at the higher echelons are expected to have broad perspective to see not only their jobs but the rest of the company. But don’ t forget the tiniest detail of your own job. Looking at the big picture is not an excuse for neglecting to see what’ s under your nose.
Typical Mistakes
While we see many people move up in their career smoothly, there are those who could not manage their successes well. Here are a few typical mistakes connected with happy transitions:
• Success gets into one’ s head. I’ ve seen a rank and file employee change entirely after being promoted as a Supervisor. He forgot that he used to be one of the boys before his promotion. His subordinates resented his bossy attitude. He was simply doing what he saw in his bosses, but that’ s not a good excuse.
• Still“ just one of the boys.” The extreme reverse could be bad for the career of a newly promoted Supervisor. A supervisory position is part of management. When rank and file employees get promoted as Supervisors, they often could not let