Strategic Management Thought

Investigating and identifying the elements and consequences of employee job demotion

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 Ph.D. Student, Faculty of Management & Accounting, College of Farabi , University of Tehran, Qom, Iran

2 Assistant Professor, Department of Public Administration, School of Management and Accounting, Farabi School, University of Tehran. Qom, Iran.

3 Doctoral student of Educational Management, Roudhan Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.

Abstract

In many organizations, they have faced various issues, including issues related to human resource management, one of which is the management of employees' careers. In career management, most research focuses on career advancement and job demotion is neglected. Therefore, focusing on the phenomenon of job demotion, the purpose of this study is to explain the dimensions and consequences of job demotion of employees. This research has been done using a qualitative approach and Meta-synthesis tools. Data collection tools and information in the present study, past documents that generally include 37 sources. The research findings indicate that this phenomenon includes various dimensions and will have consequences in the organization. Its dimensions are: reduction of organizational hierarchy, reduction of authority, weakening of job content, getting out of the job path and weakening of service compensation, the consequences of this phenomenon at the separate level of the individual and the organization can be positive or negative. Based on the consequences of job decline, organizations should be careful in choosing this phenomenon for their employees because it may lead to the destruction of human capital.

Keywords

Main Subjects

سهرابی، بابک؛ اعظمی، امیر و یزدانی، حمیدرضا (1390). آسیب‌شناسی پژوهش‌های انجام شده در زمینه مدیریت اسلامی با رویکرد فرا ترکیب. چشم‌انداز مدیریت دولتی. 2 (6). 24-9.
Arthur, M, Kharpova, S. & Wilderom, C. (2005). Career success in a boundary less career world. Journal of Organizational Behavior. 26 (6). 177-202.
Bird, A. (1994). Careers as repositories of knowledge: Considerations for boundaryless careers. Journal of Organizational Behavior. 15 (4). 325-344.
Bench.S & Day, T. (2010). The user experience of critical care discharge: a meta-synthesis of qualitative research. International journal of nursing studies. 47 (4). 487-499.
Carson, P.P. & Carson, K.D. (2007). Demystifying demotion: A look at the psychological and economic consequences on the demote. Business Horizons. 50 (11). 455-466
De Graa. R. (2017). Employee Perspectives and Attitudes Towards Demotion. Master Thesis. Maastricht University.
Dohmen, T., Kriechel, B. & Pfann, G. (2004). Monkey bars and ladders: the importance of lateral and vertical job mobility in internal labor market careers. Journal of Populatio Economics. 17 (2). 193-228.
Douglas M & More. (1962). Social Problems, Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for the Study of Social Problems. 9 (3). 213–221.
Eby, L. T., & DeMatteo, J. S. (2000). When the type of move matters: Employee outcomes undervarious relocation situations. Journal of Organizational Behavior. 21 (9). 677–687.
Feldman, D. & Ng, T. (2007). Careers, mobility, embeddedness, and success. Journal of Management. 33 (3). 350-377.
Gal, U., Jensen, T. B., & Stein, M. K. (2017). People Analytics in the Age of Big Data: An Agenda for IS Research. Retrieved from: http://aisel.aisnet.org/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1000&context=icis2017.
Glynn, L. (2006). A critical appraisal tool for library and information research. Library Hi Tech. 24 (3). 387-399.
Golembiewski, R. (1982). The demotion design: an option for forward looking firms. National Productivity Review. 2 (1). 63-70.
Goldner.f. H. (1965). Demotion in industrial management. American Sociological Review. 30 (5).714-724.
Gielen, A.C. & van Ours, J. C. (2006). Age-specific cyclical effects in job reallocation and labor mobility. Labour Economics. 13 (5). 493-504.
Hall, D.a & Isabella, L. (1985). Downward movement and career development. Organizational Dynamics. 15 (6). 5-23.
Hennekam, s; McKenna, S; Richardson, J. & Ananthram, S. (2019). Perceptions of demotion decisions: A social capital perspective. European Management Journal. 13 (1). 69–87.
Hendrik P; van Dalena, c & Kène Henkensa (2018). Why Demotion of Older Workers is a No-Go Area for Managers. The International Journal of Human Resource Management. 41 (5). 220–253.
Hedaa, L. (1978). Demotion: a step in the right direction. Personnel Management. 10 (2). 45-62.
Harvey, J. H. (2001). The psychology of loss as a lens to positive psychology. American Behavioral Scientist. 44 (5). 838−853.
Josten, T, & Schalk, R. (2010). The effects of demotion on older and younger employees. Personnel Review. 39 (2). 195-209.
Krause, R., & Semadeni, M. (2013). Apprentice, departure, and demotion: An examination of the three types of CEO-Board separation. Academy of Management Journal. 56 (3). 805-827.
Kohl, J. & Stephens, D. (1990). Is demotion a four-letter word? Business Horizons. 33 (2). 74-76.
Lazear, E.P. (1998). Personnel economics for managers: Wiley. New York.
Littler, C. R.; Wiesner, R. & Dunford, R. (2003). The dynamics of delayering: Changing management structures in three countries. Journal of Management Studies. 40 (2). 225–256.
Lima, F. (2001). Careers mobility and wage growth within large firms. IZA, Business & Economics. 17 (4). 330-372
Lyons, S.; Schweitzer, L.; Ng, E. & Kuron, L. (2012). Comparing apples to apples: a qualitative investigation of career mobility patterns across four generations. Career Development International. 30 (6). 333-357.
Lyons, S.; Schweitzer, L.; Ng, E. & Kuron, L. (2012). Comparing apples to apples: a qualitative investigation of career mobility patterns across four generations. Career Development International. 17 (4). 333-357.
Milgrom, P.R. & Roberts, J. (1992). Economics, organization and management: Prentice-Hall Englewood Cliffs. NJ.
Maslach, C. & Leiter, M. (2008). The truth about burnout: How organizations cause personal stress and what to do about it. Jossey-Bass. San Fransisco. 13 (1). 69–87
Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. (2009). “Demotion”. Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, available at: www.merriam-webster.com /dictionary /demotion (accessed 20 January).
Ng, T. W. H.; Sorensen, K. L.; Eby, L. T. & Feldman, D. C. (2007). Determinants of job mobility: A theoretical integration and extension. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology. 80 (3). 363-386
Oude Mulders, J.; Henkens, K. & Schippers, J. (2015). Organizations’ ways of employing early retirees: the role of age-based HR policies. The Gerontologist. 55 (3). 374-383.
Pettit, N.; Yong, K. & Sparato, S. (2010). Holding your place: reactions to the prospect of status gains and losses. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology. 46 (2). 396-401.
Roel. V, E, & Marinus.V. (2018). HR Analytics: A case study on the internal employee mobility. Master Thesis. Tilburg University.
Richardson, J. & Kelliher, C. (2015). Managing visibility for career sustainability: A study of remote workers. Handbook of research on sustainable careers (116-130). Edward Elgar Publishing.
Sargent, L. (2003). Effects of a downward status transition on perception of career success, role performance and job identification. Australian Journal of Psychology. 55 (2). 114-20.
Sandelowski, M. & Barroso, J. (2007). Toward a Meta synthesis of qualitative findings on motherhood in HIV-positive women. Research in Nursing & Health. 26 (2). 153-170.
Sohrabi, B., Azami, A, and Yazdani, H. (2011). Diognosis analysis of researches conducted in the field of Islamic management with meta-analysis approach. Public Administration Prespective. 2 (6). 9-24. (In Persian)
Sprague, R. (1984). The high cost of personal transitions. Training and Development Journal. 38 (10). 61-64
Van Dalen, H. P. & Henkens, K. (2016). Why demotion of older workers is a no-go area for managers. The International Journal of Human Resource Management. 15 (1). 69–87.
Van Dam, K. (2005). Employee attitudes toward job changes: An application and extension of Rusbult and Farrell’s investment model. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology. 78 (3). 253–272.
Verheyen.T, & Guerry, M. a. (2014). Structuring of demotion: A typology of demotion based on cluster analysis. Working Paper. 21 (3). 20-38
Verheyen, T; Deschacht, N & Anne Guerry, M. (2014). The occurrence of demotions regarding job level, salary and job authority. Free University of Brussels (VUB).
Verhein, T. & Guerry, M. a. (2017). Motives for (Non) practicing demotion. Employee Relations. 40 (2). 244-263.
 Veiga, J. F. (1981). Do managers on the move get any where? Harvard Business Review. 59 (2). 20-37.
Verheyen, T. & Vermeir, B. (2011). Demotie, een stap terug is een stap vooruit, Kluwer, Mechelen. (Remotion, a downward step is an upward step).
West, M.; Nicholson, N. & Rees, A. (1990). The outcomes of downward managerial mobility. Journal of Organizational Behavior. 11 (4). 119–134.
Strategic Management Thought
Volume 15, Issue 2 - Serial Number 30
August 2022
Pages 387-412
  • Receive Date: 26 August 2021
  • Revise Date: 10 April 2022
  • Accept Date: 28 May 2022