Why is a career ladder needed?

What is the purpose of establishing a career ladder? There are specific advantages linked to its implementation.

• Performance management: When expectations for an employee are unclear, meeting those expectations becomes challenging. Clear communication of expectations by managers significantly facilitates performance management, eliminating misconceptions regarding the employee's performance.
• Career progression: The employee possesses clear insights into the steps required to advance to the next level. It is inherent for individuals to aspire to career progression. A thoughtfully crafted career ladder significantly simplifies the process for both the manager and the employee, enabling them to establish goals and devise a plan for the employee's advancement to the next level.
• Salaries: Compensation based on career ladders introduces fairness. Employees are getting paid based on their expectation and will be rewarded for hard efforts. Either on the career progression or on the execution side, there is little room for ambiguities on someone’s performance. Employees that progress at their level or execute greatly at their level will be rewarded.
• Hiring: Without a clear understanding of the qualities that define a competent PM/Engineer/Marketing Specialist/Recruiter etc, the likelihood of hiring a proficient candidate decreases significantly.
• Budget control: Managers can optimize their teams by incorporating suitable hierarchical levels, consequently minimizing the budgetary requirements. For instance, relying solely on a Director of Engineering wouldn't be practical. The company achieves cost savings and operates more efficiently when there's a balanced mix of various levels.

Career Ladder Dimensions

A well designed Career Ladder is a matrix. On the vertical dimension we have the various levels of the career ladder, and on the horizontal axis we have the various dimensions that comprise what excellence is. The dimensions in Linearity are 3: Craftsmanship, Execution and Collaboration.

The dimensions Execution and Collaboration are role-independant and apply to all roles, regardless of the role and department.

Execution

Execution is the capacity of an employee to apply their craftsmanship in practice and effectively produce tangible results. Execution is level-agnostic - everyone, at any level should be able to effectively execute. This is why the expectations in execution are the same for each level and role. Of course, employees are expected to execute on the tasks that correspond to their level - not more than that.

Execution comprises of 3 criteria:

• Delivery:
  • Does the employee consistently deliver assigned tasks on time and meets all deadlines
  • Does the employee consistently delivers results with a high standard of quality and the outcome is satisfactory to all stakeholders?
• Accountability:
  • If the employee fails to execute on time, do they escalate and communicate the blockers.
  • If yes, do they propose alternative solutions to solve the blockers and deliver?
  • Do they actively chase the task at hand (thus removing blockers)? Are they on top of it?
• Going the extra mile:
  • Does the employee go beyond and above the expectations of the task that they were assigned?
  • Example: Engaging in a craft that is not their main focus.

Collaboration

Collaboration is a general term that encompasses all aspects that make an employee a great person to work with. Sometimes referred to as “soft skills”, this dimension describes a good citizen in the community of Linearity. Collaboration, much like execution, is level-agnostic. Everyone should be able to collaborate effectively - from an intern all the way up to the C level. Please note: Collaboration may be influenced by level of seniority, but as a general rule, there should be a baseline of good collaboration.

Collaboration comprises of 3 criteria:

• Cooperation:
  • Does the employee collaborate effectively with colleagues?
  • Are they easy to reach when needed, responsive and reliable?
  • Do they help if asked for help?
  • Do they share knowledge and offer guidance to others?
  • Is the employee a good team player, putting the team goals above individual priorities?
  • Do they disagree and commit if needed?
  • Do they proactively engage and participate in slack threads/live discussions?
  • Do they let others speak and share their opinion?