Limitations
As is commonly the case in organizational research, the data were collected
from a single organization in a specific industry. Thus, it is possible that the findings
that we have obtained reflect unique processes operating within this particular
organization or the industry as a whole. For example, the metaphors of promoter
and pillar are almost certainly unique to this company, although the referenced
conceptual categories may not be. Furthermore, not all organizations devote the
same level of resources to the assessment and development of managerial capability
within the firm.
For example, many firms fill managerial positions by external hiring rather
than internal promotion (Delery & Doty, 1996). Of the firms that do use internal
promotion, not all apply the same level of effort or rigor to the promotion process,
and not all use assessment centers. Hence, it is possible that the decision process
may vary across organizations. In particular, we suspect that in some firms, promotion
decisions may be made less analytically than what we have observed in the
current study, with less emphasis placed on testing and verifying hypotheses and
evaluating the final decision.
Conclusion