Who knew "The Peter Principle" came from a local guy?

[oldbrownhat]

Born in Vancouver, the Peter Principle explains why your boss is incompetent.
Principle named after B.C. educator was created as satire but has long been part of business lexicon

I grew up in Vancouver and don't recall knowing this, although the pic of the book cover is vaguely familiar.

Outside Vancouver's Metro Theatre is a plaque commemorating a play that at least two people thought was terrible.

It describes how writer Raymond Hull was complaining about the atrocious production he had been watching while standing in the theatre's lobby during an intermission.

A tall stranger who was also in the lobby then tried to explain to him how such an awful play made it to the stage.

The stranger, Laurence J. Peter, told Hull that every employee tends to rise to his level of incompetence. Workers, he argued, keep getting promoted until they are in over their heads.

The conversation in the lobby, which occurred sometime in the early-to-mid 1960s, sparked both men's imaginations and ultimately gave birth to their 1969 best-seller The Peter Principle: Why Things Always Go Wrong...

Peter and Hull's manuscript was rejected by more than a dozen publishers.

A 2018 study looked at data from more than 50,000 sales workers at 214 firms and "found evidence consistent with the Peter Principle...

Peter died at the age of 70 in January 1990 — just a few months before the death of Edward A. Murphy Jr., the U.S. aerospace engineer known for coining Murphy's Law, which says "anything that can go wrong will go wrong."

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[kamloops67]

I’m a life long resident of BC , never heard of it
Guess I need to get out more ;-)

 

[Bald1]

Never heard of it. But looks interesting. I can relate to incompetence being rewarded with promotion

 

[oldbrownhat]

I’m a life long resident of BC , never heard of it
Guess I need to get out more ;-)

Not heard of the book or the principle?

In 1969 I was only 17 and corporate incompetence was probably the last thing on my mind. Struggling with Mr. Bacon's physics class probably was of more immediate concern.

Edit: I just checked Amazon and the book is still in print!
And Murphy's Law is just as potent as ever,

 

[petepeterson]

I can relate to incompetence being rewarded with promotion

That happens a good bit, but not exactly what this "principle" is.
Simply put, an employee (even a good one) will always rise to the level of their incompetence. It's not really an insult, if you think about it. Just a statement on limitations.

 

[dockmurgw]

Just a statement on limitations.

Some call it "Peter Principle", some call it "You Can't Fix Stupid"

 

[Rustyt1953]

I was introduced to it in 1969 via my Business Math class as a HS Junior.

Much snickering ensued initially.

 

[oldbrownhat]

That happens a good bit, but not exactly what this "principle" is.
Simply put, an employee (even a good one) will always rise to the level of their incompetence. It's not really an insult, if you think about it. Just a statement on limitations.

Perhaps kinder to say that an employee will (should) rise to the level of their competence. As long as the competence and the job requirements are on par, it's all good. The problem arises when this balance gets out of whack and people get bumped up the corporate ladder due to other factors such as favoritism, nepotism or some other "-ism" and they are out of their depth.

 

[soFlaNative]

Peter Principal popped into my head when I read this post.

https://smith-wessonforum.com/loung...et-shot-down-friendly-fire.html#post142132938
As a long time civil servant I've seen it in practice more than I liked.

 

[Tom S.]

I heard of it in the late 60's / early 70's. Working for a large corporation, I saw in action very frequently.

 

[Bald1]

Some call it "Peter Principle", some call it "You Can't Fix Stupid"

You can’t fix it. But you can put duct tape on it ?!?!?!

 

[CalifEd]

I heard of it in the late 60's / early 70's. Working for a large corporation, I saw in action very frequently.

It's on display (and in action) in politics too, no matter the level.

 

[DWalt]

Mrs. Murphy’s corollary to Murphy’s Law was “and always at the worst possible time.”

 

[DWalt]

Perhaps kinder to say that an employee will (should) rise to the level of their competence. As long as the competence and the job requirements are on par, it's all good. The problem arises when this balance gets out of whack and people get bumped up the corporate ladder due to other factors such as favoritism, nepotism or some other "-ism" and they are out of their depth.

I worked at one fairly large company where most of the senior management executives were in place at least two steps beyond their competency levels. and those few who were competent didn’t stay around long. Working there was like being in an old TV comedy series what with all of the inexplicable decisions rolling down from above. And the Federal government leadership at its best is just as bad. I guess you could say that Peter was an optimist.

Another large company I worked for fresh out of college was an example of gross nepotism. Nearly all upper level executives were members of the same family either by blood or by marriage. Sort of like the old DuPont chemical company business used to be. It took me a couple of years to realize that there was no room at the top, or anywhere even close to it, without having the right name and I left. That company became history years later after a takeover and was soon broken up and sold off in pieces. It is now Valero. I have nothing but bad memories about that place.

 

[Retired W4]

Mess up, move up, so to speak.

 

[llowry61]

My experience in corporate America was the job often outpaced people's capabilities. I saw it a lot as the company grew. People got promoted but couldn't keep up with the constantly evolving environment.

When the move fast and break things leadership style took over, I decided I had enough. I do not agree with jamming things in and relying on the capable people to figure it out on the fly.

 

[Old 44 Guy]

Where I worked for many years[Telco] there was a story going around. When you were hired they gave you a bag of marbles. Then every time you goofed they took one marble away. So, when you lost all your marbles they made you management. So true.

 

[swsig]

The Peter Principle sometimes leads to the phenomenon of "kicking someone upstairs". The incompetent manager is given what appears to be a promotion, but in reality it's a move to a position where he/she can do little or no further damage to the organization. Yes, that may be rewarding failure, but sometimes organizational politics means that a "kicking upstairs" results in less of a hassle than a demotion or a firing.

 

[soFlaNative]

The Peter Principle sometimes leads to the phenomenon of "kicking someone upstairs". The incompetent manager is given what appears to be a promotion, but in reality it's a move to a position where he/she can do little or no further damage to the organization. Yes, that may be rewarding failure, but sometimes organizational politics means that a "kicking upstairs" results in less of a hassle than a demotion or a firing.

True in many cases. A few guys were given supervisory positions to get them out of the field and harms way. Asides from prioritizing busy work their duties consisted of the same for supervisors everywhere; stupid questions, useless comments and pointless observations.

 

[wuluf]

Outstanding salespeople often make terrible sales managers..

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