What is the Peter Principle?

You work hard, get noticed, and are promoted. However, being a good worker at one level does not mean you will be good at the next. In fact, you will probably be promoted until you reach a level where you are no longer good at all. In other words, an employee is promoted based on their success in previous jobs until they reach a level at which they are no longer competent, as skills in one job do not necessarily translate to another. This is the Peter Principle.

For example, if you’re promoted from developer to senior developer, your work may be more challenging but you’re using the same skills. When you are promoted from senior developer to manager, however, you may lack the “soft skills” needed for such a role. Your technical ability will not necessarily translate into management ability. Just because someone is an excellent developer or engineer doesn’t mean they have the skills to manage people.

If you aspire to climb the organizational ladder, make sure you are developing the skills necessary to ensure your success. Take personal responsibility for becoming the person you want to be and succeeding in the position you want to have.

Below, you can see a very simple representation of the Peter Principle.

The principle was introduced some 40 years ago in a satire written by Canadian educator Laurence J. Peter and journalist Raymond Hull. It has since found its way into management theory. Peter says that he discovered the principle during his first job as a teacher: “I began to suspect that the local school system did not have a monopoly on incompetence. As I looked further afield, I saw that every organization contained a number of persons who could not do their jobs.” He supports his theory with several amusing examples of employees who have passed their personal level of competence. If you really want to be good at your job, simply avoid being promoted.