The Proverbial Glass ceiling

When one encounters barriers preventing promotion or promotion beyond a certain point in an organisation, several reasons are often provided:

• There are no vacancies at the higher level
• The individual may have an exaggerated view of his or her abilities
• He or she may be stuck in the competency trap,
• Or beneath the glass ceiling.

Being honest about what's really holding you back is never easy, and the proverbial "glass ceiling" makes it tougher. It's seldom a confession among leaders, yet much talked about of late. If you find yourself in this position, you'd recognize the frustration with the repeated requests for introspection. It’s like a delay tactic in the hope you’d either get over it, or move on. Don’t beat yourself up. A quick look at the community you denied entry into, sometimes reveal similarities that extend beyond professional, qualification and experience lines.

Why, is a subject of much debate. There are arguments grounded on nepotism & discrimination & some perspectives from cognitive psychology offering polite explanations. Two of which described below, crudely put, signals a native response to threat. 

“Generativity” or lack thereof. This refers to the concern for others besides oneself. Having its roots in our innate desire for continuity, it's the subtle & sometimes indirect attempts at developing and promoting others. The feeling is known to develop during midlife. Although, many of this era are known for genuine fairness, the senior management segment in a substantial number of organisations is rife with imbalances from the past. They could be unaware  their actions actually perpetuates the past, thus holding up the glass ceiling. 

“Self-preservation” - An ageing workforce. Up to three quarters of the working population opt to work beyond state retirement age. At a time when artificial intelligence & machine learning has taken a lot off the table, we have, perhaps in the short term, a shortfall of idea generators & integrator's, and a surplus of administrators and traditional managers. Relinquishing control & giving up position will not be a common trait.

While terminologies like “natural selection", is supposedly being replaced by “societal” & “inter subjective norms", the outcomes are similar. The past is immortalized whether through unconscious or conscious biases. It's a reality and examples of how diversity is being embraced are few. Some options, instead of staring at the ceiling for too long: 

• The young ambitious enthusiasts (you probably already know this): re frame your mind. Don’t just aspire for the higher rungs. Forget the corporate ladder there’s much to be experienced and enjoyed within & more so beyond the walls of your organisation. The transformation agenda can be influenced, but the new work order will not. Job hop & yes money it is! You have a lot more ‘room’ to navigate so exploit the working conditions to suit your lifestyle. 
• For others well on the up; there may be relief in management practices that encourage fair & equitable succession. But don’t be discouraged by the lack of transformation or feel threatened by the new work order. More industries are being disrupted and businesses are evolving, but it takes mature judgment to materialize fresh ideas in a sustainable way. Flatter structures are becoming popular because the top is feeling  detached. You are aptly poised to bring them together. Up skill, retrain and try something new.

Ask yourself whether you caught up beneath the 'glass ceiling', in the 'competency trap' or on the 'hedonic treadmill'. Living your life always in pursuit of the next best thing, is just as futile as looking up for your time to come, when it continues to be expiring within you.