To be annoyed that management position wasn’t offered internally?

[Alittlebitmiffed]

I have NC’d for this

I work at a small business, I am classed as senior staff alongside a few others.
I have a really good relationship with the directors of the business, my work feedback has always been good and I’m currently working towards my final qualification.

I am first point of call for queries from junior staff and review their work on occasion.

Recently we have had a new hire, who is less qualified and less experienced than myself and the other senior staff who I work alongside. However they have been given a management title (and assumably a higher pay than myself).

The management position wasn’t mentioned to myself or my colleagues, we just received an email to say that someone new had been taken on.

The new person seems lovely, I just really don’t see what they bring to the table that myself or one of my colleagues couldn’t.

AIBU to feel a bit miffed about this? My colleagues also feel the same way, that given the opportunity we would have interviewed for the position.

Maybe your opinion of yourself isn't the same as theirs. What's needed at a management level can be quite different. If you are still taking professional qualifications that doesn't sound terribly senior?

I had an internal guy apply for a management role i was hiring externally. He thought he was the ideal candidate. I knew he wasn't, his communication skills weren't up to it and he just isn't a leader. I also specifically wanted someone "new" to change up some toxic ways of working in the team.

@Peridoteage yes I think you’re possibly right.
Less than 50% of our senior staff are ‘fully qualified’ (without giving too much detail it’s an industry with many qualification options) - the new hire possesses only the entry level qualification which some of our mid-tier staff also have.

Similar situation here

New starter, higher salary, higher level and a lot younger. And no industry experience.

We're all guessing about why she's been hired, suspicious she has an internal connection.

@coxesorangepippin it’s very frustrating isn’t it. I suppose even more so if you suspect that she may have had an unfair advantage.

I’m confident that the new hire with us got the position fairly - it’s just a bit annoying for the rest of us that would have jumped at the chance.

Being relatively senior isn't the same as possessing management skills. Just like pronouns and reflexive pronouns are not interchangeable.

It's a small business, they know you and what you are capable of. If they didn't offer it internally, it's because they didn't think you were suitable.

@medievalpenny you’re right.
I think at my next appraisal I will ask their reasoning, sadly it’s unlikely that a management level position will come up again where I am now in the next few years unless the new hire doesn’t stay, but it would give something to work towards for future opportunities elsewhere.

Was the post not advertised anywhere? That would be odd and unfair if the person was just handed a job smacks of who you know not what you know. If it was advertised you all could have applied.

@AnchorWHAT no it wasn’t advertised. Apparently they sent their CV in a few months ago and were offered an interview more recently.

They didn’t advertise internally because they didn’t want an internal. You need to think about that and decide if this is a place you want to work going forward. Because you can make bigger career jumps by moving. Loyalty is overrated. No company can ever be loyal to you.

is the new hire male by any chance?

@RhiWrites this is what it comes down to isn’t it. Essentially myself and colleagues are not good enough for the role, which is a kick in the teeth considering new persons qualifications/experience/time in the industry.

I’m in the office today and there’s a quiet uproar. Feel sorry for new hire as not their fault - hopefully they’re blissfully unaware.

@Southshore18 no

I wouldn’t count on them being higher paid than you. I know quite a few people at my work that are more senior than me but are paid less than me. They recruit young cheap people who are attracted to the job title in order to keep the overall staff costs down. Someone expensive goes and they replace them with someone as cheap as possible. On a big scale they obviously want to make as much profit as possible. On a local scale, they are trying to keep the headline figure for salaries down to avoid scrutiny and staff redundancies.

This isn't always the case. Sometimes they think they wouldn't be able to employ someone to do your role at the same cost and to the same level so they don't actually want you to progress because they won't be able to replace you without redefining job descriptions and having to pay new hires more than you.
Maybe you are just too good and inexpensive in your current role.

It is a thing. People too good and valuable in a specific role in an organisation to risk promoting. Especially in smaller organisations.

Quite often people have leave to climb the corporate ladder. Have you considered applying for more senior roles elsewhere?

Maybe it’s your English and grammar. I’m a business owner and I won’t promote anyone if they use, “myself” the way you have used it. I won’t even interview them if it’s used that way on their CV or covering letter.
Communication is very important and use of correct language is very important.

@Cadenza12 I hadn’t - I love my job, colleagues and clients and it fits well around my family. I would be very sad to leave but I think that’s probably what it’s going to come to.

OMG I am SO glad someone else said it 😅

The word 'myself' seems to be inexplicably shoehorned in everywhere these days.

To me, it says that this person thinks they are smarter than they are. And I want to manage the job they’re doing, not their language. Happy to help someone when English isn’t their first language but they usually only need shown once. English speakers who write like this, in my experience, will ignore feedback and continue doing it. I won’t have it from someone representing my business.

@Bobiverse maybe it is, however if the Directors think that my English and grammar require improvement then I would hope that they would provide feedback rather than just writing me off.

If it's a small business, and you and your colleagues would all have gone for the role, I'd wonder if the owner just wanted to avoid having to make that choice and dealing with potential conflict within the existing team?

I'm not saying it's great management, but would you all of have been genuinely happy if one of the existing team got the promotion?

The company knows you and your colleagues and determined that internal promotion was not a possibility. As others have pointed out your opening post contains grammatical errors and reads poorly. It doesn't look like you proof read it before posting. Perhaps this is an area you could look at if you want to be promoted in the future or intend to present a CV to external employers.

Has promotion within the company been discussed during your annual review?

I hope the new hire is not meeting any resentment from existing staff.

You could have made that last sentence read better by saying "communication and use of correct language is very important". No need to repeat "very important" then ☺️

Edited - theres a rogue comma in your post too.

@UrbanFan I will certainly ask for feedback on this as it’s not something that’s come up before

Previously there’s been no movement for a promotion, our company structure is a bit odd in that until recently there was just one manager above the many senior level staff. It had been that way for many years.

Feedback from my most recent appraisal was that they’d like me to continue to take on more responsibility but it’s all very fuzzy with no specific targets.

I really hope so too as they seem very pleasant.