An Argument For Promoting From Within

How’s this for an argument: 40 to 60 percent of external hires are unsuccessful, while only 25 percent of internal hires are, according to a story in HRE Online.

So why hire from the outside at all? Why are talented people already inside the company often looked over? The “new kid in school” phenomenon (their words, not ours) contributes to a mystique that makes the external guy look better.

“A common argument for not hiring from within is that ‘we don’t have anybody with those skills,’” but, experts told HRE Online, “coaching and training existing staff can be a more cost-effective alternative.”

“I always like to ask a potential client: ‘Are there any internal candidates we can consider and, if not, why not?’ ” Kurt Weyerhauser, managing partner of Kensington Stone, an executive search firm based in Los Angeles, told HRE Online. He said that a ratio of 35 percent external to 65 percent internal is about the right balance.

It seems in our (limited) experience that many media companies like to promote their employees from within up to a certain point, but if you want to advance higher, you’ll have to go outside the company (and then possibly return later). Does this jibe with your experience? Let us know.

Join Baratunde Thurston (left), The Onion’s Director of Digital and author of How to Be Black, for an entertaining look at creative social media campaigns in our Social Media Marketing Boot Camp starting this Thursday, February 16. Other speakers include Morin Oluwole (Facebook), Michael Brito (Edelman Digital), and Tim Devane (bitly). Register now.