The Invisible Promotion: How Leaders Respond to New Responsibilities

The transfer of a leadership role in a company can be formal (in which case it is accompanied by changes in the title of the position and level of responsibility) or informal. A formal transition can be vertical (this is a promotion), horizontal (moving to another division), or territorial (moving to another country or moving to another market).

However, managers often face “invisible” changes, that is, an employee has new tasks and responsibilities, but nothing changes in his official position. This is especially true during the covid-19 crisis . Companies under the pressure of hard necessity had to urgently launch new business models, and leaders to take on additional responsibilities. Changes in tasks and responsibilities have become more numerous than ever, while on the formal side, in many cases, nothing has changed. Thus, the transfer of leadership became particularly informal, and therefore even more difficult to trace.

In order to understand what problems people face in such situations, in April-July 2020, the European School of Management and Technology conducted a study in which 396 respondents participated. They have held leadership positions at all levels, from front line to board members; 76% were middle managers or higher. About half (55%) faced a relocation within Germany, and 45% moved to another position outside the country.