I Regret Accepting a Promotion: 4 Reasons It Was a Bad Move for My Career
Written by
Heather Altamirano
Edited by
Ashleigh Ray
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Ten years ago, Jamie Rivero was a 25-year-old grad student at Villanova University pursuing a master’s in Human Resource Development.
She was working as a Site Human Resources Manager when she was offered a promotion to Regional Human Resources Manager. She excitedly accepted, but things quickly changed, and Rivero came to regret accepting the new position.
“It ended up being the worst decision I ever made,” she told us. Here’s why.
She Didn’t Get the Bonuses She Was Promised
Rivero was told she would get monthly bonuses with her promotion, but the company lacked transparency.
“The pay increase was $5,000, [with] the promise of monthly bonuses,” she said. “…[These bonuses] ended up only happening the first month. The rest of the months, I received zero bonus because it was a team-based bonus, not an individual one.”
They Wouldn’t Work Around Her School Schedule
Rivero had no problem attending college and working in her former position, but that wasn’t the case with the promotion.
“I had started my Masters’s Degree already and was a year into my degree,” she said.
“In the new division, they told me I was unable to leave a half hour early to attend a class once per week six months after I had already accepted the promotion, and in my prior division, they had worked around my grad school schedule with no issue because I always came in early to compensate for the time I was missing one to two times per week (it was the only time this class was offered) and that I would need to switch to an online degree program or take a pause from my program.”
She added, “That wasn’t an option at the time, especially given how much money I had invested in this degree.”
Not Everything Was Disclosed About the New Position
Upon getting the promotion, Rivero was transferred to a different division, where she realized she hadn’t been told everything about the position she had taken on.
“A lot was not disclosed to me during the interview process, which came as quite a shock when I moved into the role,” she told us.
“In this role, I was responsible for managing multiple sites. I was in a consulting role where Fortune 500 companies would hire us to staff and manage workforces for locations. I was responsible for maintaining the relationships, hiring staff, reviewing staff, handling the employee relations, etc.”
She continued, “They did not disclose that the relationships had soured, so I was thrown into these situations with very unhappy clients. Fortunately, I was able to turn things around substantially, but it was very tough and came as quite a surprise.
“Not that I had the expectation that everything would be great, but I would have appreciated a heads-up and a better understanding of what I was signing up for.”
She Was Expected To Work More Than She Was Told
Another issue Rivero had due to taking the promotion was to the increase to her workload.
“There was an expectation to work 50+ hours a week regularly, which they never communicated, and it was hard because I would get my work done [early], so it turned into other people’s work being moved on to me,” said Rivero.
“I have no problem putting in extra time and [have done so] my entire career without ever being asked, however for me, it’s counterproductive for me to put tons of time in when I am not being productive nor being compensated additionally…”
She added, “I had 24/7 operations and was always available for these clients because I dealt not only with their corporate employees but also line managers/supervisors, etc. I was always fielding questions/handling situations as needed outside of the normal business hours, which I was fine with. I wasn’t fine with sitting in the office with nothing to do and constantly trying to find things to do.”
She Finally Left the Role
Eventually, Rivero took control of the situation and left for a much happier environment.
“I ended up sticking out four more months in the role while looking for my next career move,” she explained.
“I ended up accepting my current role, which I have been in for ten years. The entire experience taught me how important it was to do research and ask lots of questions before deciding to accept a promotion. Money doesn’t buy happiness, and in that case, it certainly did not.”
How She Made the Best Out of the Situation
After reflecting on the unpleasant experience, Rivero said she did take away some positive lessons from the job and looked back fondly on some aspects.
“I learned a ton, and I found the experience so valuable. I wish the experience within that division was better. My clients were amazing to me at the end, and I still have relationships with some of them to this day.”
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