I was promised my supervisor's role once she retires, but instead the position was reclassified and an external agency used to attract candidates.

Anonymous

May 11,2022 at 9:27PM UTC

Welcome to Fairygodboss!

We’re the largest online career community helping women achieve their career goals. Gain access to articles, jobs, events, and a supportive network of women and allies. Membership is free, always.

I was promised my supervisor's role once she retires, but instead the position was reclassified and an external agency used to attract candidates. I was the only internal candidate and after four rounds, not sent to the final rounds because I was doing phenomenal in my current role and the CFO did not want to create a void with my promotion. Extremely unsatisfying response. We have a new boss - a white male with limited experience and double the salary in the budget for this position.

Why women love us:

Daily articles on career topics
Jobs at companies dedicated to hiring more women
Advice and support from an authentic community
Events that help you level up in your career
Free membership, always

10 comments

Share your insight

Join an authentic community that helps women support each other at work. Share your professional experience or ask for advice — you can even post anonymously.

10 Comments

Join the conversation

AnonymousMay 11,2022 at 10:23PM UTC
Sorry to hear. A promise is never a guarantee and sometimes that climb to the top can be brutal and not always pan out as expected. If there are other leadership positions within your org you are interested in apply. Also apply outside the org. Keep your options open.
Emily StarkMay 11,2022 at 10:54PM UTC
That is incredibly disappointing. Did the CFO say this to you directly? If that was the sole reason you didn't progress, he/she failed here. Leaders uplift their teams; stunting your growth impacts you and sends out a web of negativity. I'm sorry.
How do you feel about talking with the CFO and other leaders to advocate for your growth? You could start the conversation by sharing ways the team/company will benefit as your level up.
AnonymousMay 12,2022 at 3:41AM UTC
I thought of the same thing to discuss it with my CFO, but then he has completely rubbed himself off the department since the new SVP started. Bad example of leadership.
JJMay 12,2022 at 1:56AM UTC
Quit.
I am so sorry you went through this and you must be so upset but they really showed who they are and what they do and do not value, which is you. Maybe do not quit today (bills, financial security, etc.) but do not stick around for the next screw-over.
Joan Williams, Senior Talent Acquisition SpecialistMay 12,2022 at 6:39AM UTC
Sorry this happened to you. Are you looking for advice or wanting to vent?
AnonymousMay 12,2022 at 12:06PM UTC
Not the first time those "promises" didn't pan out. So sorry it happened to you. You are not alone. I watched this go down to a close colleague pretty brutally a few years ago.
In her case it had more to do with some necessary but unpopular decisions she had to make while in her interim role (which dragged on way too long). My immediate advice was that she 1) had to decide if it was worth leaving and 2) in the meantime support the new director fully because it wasn't the new external hire's fault they got picked over her.
The new hire ended up being a disaster, but my friend had nothing to do with it and ended up leaving anyway in the midst of the meltdown. Best of luck to you, whatever you decide is next.
AnonymousMay 12,2022 at 12:53PM UTC
For any career woman reading this, please, please remember this “a promise is worth the paper it’s written on!!” when it comes to work.
I do sympathise with your position and don’t know enough about your career experience, however you can never assume you are the only candidate, or promised a role and will have it land on your lap. I’ve been that outsider who has had the “newness factor” and have taken senior roles at new companies and seen the bitterness of the internal candidates. Have recently lost a good friend (his bitterness and griping lost him a lot of favour and he started becoming destructive in his behaviours), a senior brand manager in his late 40s who also piped on about “being promised a step up when I interviewed last year”…yeah right, they’ll say anything.
Start looking for a role outside that represents what you want. Do not stay too long at this place as you will likely not get over what has happened. Expectation vs reality.
AnonymousMay 12,2022 at 1:44PM UTC
Promises are nice but if the promise was form your former supervisor then even if earnestly intended then it was deceptive because she didn't have the power to follow-through, always think about who is making the promise and in what form. Is it written? Is it saying that you are appropriate for the role in an evaluation? These are indicators of how seriously to take the promise.
I would recommend starting to search for a new role elsewhere at the title that you were promised, using your former supervisor as a reference.
AnonymousMay 12,2022 at 9:02PM UTC
This happens more often than not. Unfortunately there is nothing you can do. I'm so sorry this happened to you.
Afo Ogbeyalu KaluMay 13,2022 at 1:37PM UTC
Use this unfortunate experience as the fuel to drive you towards a much more financially rewarding and fulfilling position with another company. You know you have the ability to handle a leadership role, and now you have a better understanding of the salary range for that type of position in your market. Best of luck!