[tab name=’Guidelines’]

Guidelines : Announcing

Announcing Raises, Promotions, or Transfers to Your Staff

Guidelines and Alternate Phrases

• Announce the promotion or transfer, including new position title, effective date, and reporting line.
• We are pleased to announce….
• Jack Jordan will be assuming the new position of vice president of marketing, effective May 1, reporting directly to Michael Crock. We are so pleased to have him take the reins of leadership for our eastern division.
• Barbara Stedman has recently assumed the position of director of human resources, reporting directly to Michael Treadwell.
• We are pleased to welcome Harvey Malone to the position of controller, effective October 15. Harvey will be reporting to the vice president of operations here in Atlanta.
• Briefly outline the new responsibilities so others in the department will know how their tasks relate to those of the promoted employee.
• Highlight some of the past accomplishments that led to the promotion or transfer.
• As you may remember, Marla has led our team to record sales on the Fusia products for the last two years.
• In past positions, David has developed policies and procedures on personnel issues and negotiated client contracts for gas purchases.
• Harold comes to us from United Ferris, where he held several internal auditing positions.
• Carol led the effort to restructure our European division, a turnaround that within three years resulted in a 428 percent increase in gross revenue.
• My personal regards to Jackie as she assumes this position in the style of her many past successes.
• Myrl has had many successes. In her first year here, she was instrumental in…. During the last two years, she has successfully completed….
• Show confidence and pride in the announcement, as if bestowing a reward for work well done. Your announcement may serve as motivation for other employees.
• We are so pleased to provide these opportunities for advancement for such high achievers as Chris.
• We look forward to great things from Sylvia in this new job. She is an idea waiting to happen.
• Our eyes are on Phil. We’re expecting even more successes in this new position.
• We have every confidence Joanna will do great things in this capacity.
• We are watching eagerly as David establishes new client contacts in this region.
• We have great expectations for Marla as she assumes this new role.
• Our support is with you, Marilyn, as you forge ahead into these uncharted waters of Waverly accounts.
• We look forward to his leadership in this new position.
• We welcome his creativity with this new assignment.
• I’m anticipating great things from John with this challenge.
• John, welcome and good luck.
• Our best to you, Marla, as you assume the reins of this new challenge.
• The opportunities and the challenges are great. We wish Foster well.
• The challenges and the rewards are there–we’re excited about what Rob can do and wish him well.
• With great confidence, we want to express our best wishes to Seiko as she masterminds our division’s future success.

[/tab]
[tab name=’Example 1′]

Example 1: Letter for announcement of promotion

Memorandum

TO: All Employees

FROM:

DATE:

SUBJECT:

We are pleased to announce the promotion of Donna Sizemore to vice president of marketing for our European operations, effective September 1. In this new position, Donna will be reporting directly to Richard Chambers.

This assignment will involve a “ground-up” challenge, with a plethora of opportunities to excel in a totally new arena. Donna will be setting up distributorships in England, Spain, Sweden, Portugal, and Italy for our automotive products. Then she will be opening retail centers for the remainder of our product lines, with all the accompanying responsibilities that entails.

Donna has proven her mettle, even in a weak and unstable economy, having come to us 15 years ago as an eager sales rep fresh out of the University of Texas. Her career has taken her through several positions throughout the eastern and southern divisions as local, regional, and divisional manager.

Please join me in offering your congratulations and support to Donna in this new challenge. We’re expecting her to take Europe by storm.

Sincerely,
[/tab]
[tab name=’Example 2′]

Example 2: Announce the employee promotion

Company Name or Letterhead
Address
City, State Zip

Date

Addressee
Address
City, State Zip

To All Employees:

We are very pleased to announce the August 1 promotion of Darrell Ray to vice president of human resources development, reporting directly to me.

Darrell has been with us for the past 10 years, serving in varied capacities in the personnel area. He joined us when we had only three stores open in the area and has successfully taken us through the “swamps” of opening an additional 22 stores. Darrell has worn all kinds of hats during these past years, developing personnel policies, compensation packages, and training courses. The training courses, as those of you who’ve been trained know, have received excellent evaluations and have enabled us to move forward with new stores at an almost unheard-of pace.

In his new position, Darrell will be coordinating all personnel and training functions for all geographical divisions. His number-one priority will continue to be recruitment for senior executive positions as we continue our expansion and reach our goal of becoming the largest eyewear manufacturing and retail operation in the world.

Please join me in congratulating Darrell on his accomplishments and his promotion. We’re looking forward to even greater leadership from him in this new position.

Sincerely,
[/tab]
[tab name=’Example 3′]

Example 3: Announcing promotion

Memorandum

TO:

FROM:

DATE:

SUBJECT: Promotion of Pam Myers to Senior Systems Analyst

We are pleased to announce Pam Myers has been promoted to senior systems analyst, effective October 1, 19–. Pam’s first project will be designing and implementing the purchasing-control system.

As a graduate of the University of Arizona, Pam came to us as a computer programmer. She has since participated in all aspects of developing the security-control system, the capital-accounting projects, the vehicle-registration system, and finally, the plant accounting year-end system.

With pride, we look forward to other contributions from Pam in her new role. Please join me in congratulating her.
[/tab]
[tab name=’Example 4′]

Example 4: Employee transfer letters

Memorandum

TO: All Employees

FROM:

DATE:

SUBJECT: Sandra Aarons Promoted to Director of Public Relations

Sandra Aarons is promoted to director of public relations, effective March 5. We are looking forward to having Sandra take over the reins of our public relations offices.

The folks at Lake East Hospital have long been aware of Sandra’s excellent work. In her 12 years as head of public relations at Lake East, Sandra carried us through the early years of our heart transplant program and organized the most successful blood drive in the county’s history. Under her watch, the hospital’s volunteer force has grown by over 250percent. And, of course, she instituted the popular “Meet the Wizards” days with players from the Toledo Wizards.

As director of public relations, Sandra will coordinate the public relations efforts of Lake East, Lake Central, and Lake West Hospitals. She will report to the CEO’s of each hospital.

Congratulations Sandra! We anticipate many more successes in your new position.
[/tab]
[tab name=’Example 5′]

Example 5: Acceptance letter for employee promotion

Memorandum

TO:

FROM:

DATE:

SUBJECT: Horace Claycomb—New Chief of Product Development

We would like to welcome Horace Claycomb as our chief of product development, effective April 23. He now reports to the executive board.

When Horace came to us from Pennsylvania University, he was an engineer in our research division, working on what was at the time the most cutting edge chip technology in the industry. After eight years in research, he moved to the product development division. As a project coordinator for the last six years, he has led us through the introductions of our three biggest selling computers.

We have come to expect great things from Horace. I know you will join me in congratulating him on his promotion.
[/tab]
[tab name=’Guidelines’]

Guidelines: Approving

Approving Raises, Promotions, or Transfers for Your Staff

Guidelines and Alternate Phrases

Announce the good news immediately.

• We are pleased to approve your request for a merit increase of $3,000, effective with the May pay period.
• Thank you for bringing your most recent contributions to my attention. After talking with several of our other divisional managers to determine the “norm,” I agree your past performance has been exemplary. Therefore, I’m happy to be able to say we plan to increase your monthly salary by $450, effective immediately.
• Jason, I am happy to say I’ve been given approval to go ahead with your promotion to….
• We have the go-ahead on your transfer. Effective Monday, May 6, you will assume the role of….
• Give the effective date, the salary, major new responsibilities, and any new reporting lines. Make clear any trial period with the new responsibilities, mentioning date and review standards for the permanent assignment.
• Of course, we will want to review your performance after the first six months to see if the new projects are indeed contributing significantly to our operations. Specifically, we will be looking at….
• After the first three months, you and I can review how you think the new job supports or frustrates our efforts in the field. To be completely satisfied with this new trial arrangement, I will want to see a 20 percent increase in….
• Show confidence and pride, rather than obligation, in granting approval; bestow the promotion and/or raise as if it were a reward–which it is. Don’t sound begrudging or matter-of-fact. Remember, although employees will not be unhappy to receive a raise or promotion, they have other needs to be met, including the need for recognition and security. Approve with elaboration and with commendation for a job well done, specifically mentioning one or two of the most important contributions or skills acquired, but remember that effusive flattery sounds insincere.
• Your participative management skills are just what we’ve needed in that department for the past two years.
• Particularly, we’ve appreciated your attitude through the difficulties last year. We think this shows the kind of perseverance we need in an executive headed for senior rank.
• Your employee record says you have continued to upgrade your skills on various machines, and we want to commend you on your farsightedness in this preparation for advancement.
• I’ve noted your ease in dealing with difficult customers, particularly on the Pullman and Monroe accounts. We think these interpersonal skills deserve recognition.
• Your past work in the Bilton research has indeed been valuable in our total efforts.
• Your ability to exceed quota by such a large percentage for the past 12 months has been outstanding.
• Your attitude, your flexibility, and your timing have been excellent on past projects.
• End with a statement of goodwill that expresses wishes for a good future working relationship and/or more accomplishments. Express confidence for the employee’s future.
• You have a great future here, Joan.
• We know you will meet the needs in this new department, whatever they may turn out to be this next year.
• Keep up the good work and let us hear of your successes.
• We’ll be eager to read your first reports.
• We have every confidence you can turn this project around.
• We feel you are the right person for the project, and we will be behind you all the way.
• We are thrilled to place you in this new role.
• We are eager to keep you happy with Belco.
• We are pleased to be able to reward your efforts in this way.
• We are always willing to pay for such excellent performance.
• This increase is a positive step for both you and us. We value your contributions.
• We look forward to your long and rewarding career here at Fullerbrook.
• This promotion is one you deserve. Thank you for your commitment to a job well done.

[/tab]
[tab name=’Example 6′]

Example 6: Approving position request

Company Name or Letterhead
Address
City, State Zip

Date

Addressee
Address
City, State Zip

Dear Brenda:

We are pleased to say we have decided to ask you to assume the position of director in our Orlando office, with the accompanying salary increase of $12,000 annually.

Your past work has confirmed your ability to put customer needs above that of internal workings and changes in staffing. Specifically, your ability to land the Monroe contract has allowed us to increase our billings by more than eight percent during the last few months alone, and the possibilities with that arrangement are limited only by our creativity as managers.

We appreciate your ability to identify new markets and your determination to forge into them with confidence. This promotion and increase, we hope, will confirm to you our plans for your continued advancement in the company. You have our solid support with your new responsibilities.

Sincerely,
[/tab]
[tab name=’Example 7′]

Example 7: Letter to employee for approving raises

Company Name or Letterhead
Address
City, State Zip

Date

Addressee
Address
City, State Zip

Dear J.W.:

I am pleased to agree to your assuming the additional responsibilities for supervising Teeben Heather Associates, effective July 1. Robert McNair will report directly to you after that date. You will continue to manage the western division, which includes responsibility for the ongoing work in Alaska and in Canada.

We suggest you continue to keep your office in Seattle. Your compensation will be $78,000 annually, with the normal scale for bonuses.

As we have discussed most recently in my office, your record is exemplary; the early completion of the Ferguson facilities has put us ahead of our projections by more than $500,000.

We welcome you to the new challenge and have complete confidence in your abilities to increase our profits by at least 14 percent, as our marketing projections state. We’re looking forward to your first quarter.

Regards,
[/tab]
[tab name=’Example 8′]

Example 8: Approval letter for position

Memorandum

TO:

FROM:

DATE:

SUBJECT: Approval to Assume Administrative Assistant Position

With pleasure I’d like to approve your request to assume the position of administrative assistant, effective March, 1, 19–, with a salary increase of $2,000. You will continue to report to me.

After you settle into the job with the duties outlined in your memo, I’ll also be asking you to assume other tasks to help with routine correspondence from my office. I also think your suggestion that we contact Cindy Hoffman to assume the typing, filing, and duplicating tasks is a good one and will ask that as your first duty you contact Cindy about her interests. In the event she is unavailable or uninterested in the move, please arrange to contact Personnel for their recommendations in hiring a replacement.

Thanks for reminding me what significant contributions you have made to the department during the past two years. I do particularly value your initiative in restructuring the filing system and also your willingness to relieve the surveyors of the “routine” matters as you have had the time. As I mentioned in your last performance appraisal, you are the kind of dependable employee we’d like to keep.
[/tab]
[tab name=’Example 9′]

Example 9: Approving

Memorandum

TO:

FROM:

DATE:

SUBJECT: Project Coordinator Promotion Granted

I am pleased to approve your promotion to project coordinator in the ecology group, effective May 1. Your salary will increase to $32,000, the standard starting salary of a project coordinator.

In your new position you will report to Ben Jerrell, director of the ecology group. You will be responsible for researching and writing publishable quality reports on the projects he assigns.

As with all project coordinators, we will conduct a review every four months for the first year and an annual review each subsequent year. We are looking for precision and comprehension in your research skills and uniform quality in your writing. Since most of our projects are on tight schedules and budgets, we also encourage efficient use of time and resources.

We appreciate your contributions as administrative assistant. Your talent for finding needs within the company and meeting them is just the sort of initiative we are looking for in our employees. Now that you have created a Web site for our company, I can’t imagine what we did without one. The site is responsible for 20percent of our contacts. And the many hours you spent providing technical support to the ecology and transportation divisions when we switched to new software was exceptional.

We have every confidence that your performance as a project coordinator will be equally exceptional.
[/tab]
[tab name=’Example 10′]

Example 10: Approving Letters

Company Name or Letterhead
Address
City, State Zip

Date

Addressee
Address
City, State Zip

Dear Tim:

After speaking with Maria Fuentes, I am happy to tell you that we have approved your raise. Effective January 1, you will receive $300.00 more per month.

Maria and I agree that your work with us in the past three years has been uniformly excellent. We appreciate you bringing your impressive list of accomplishments to our attention. In particular, your reorganization of our sales districts has helped us realize over $53,000 in savings yearly.

Your attention to detail and eye on efficiency are qualities we value in our employees. Maria tells me that she relies on your talents to keep the department running smoothly. We hope you will see this raise as a sign of our commitment to keeping you at Martin Sanders for a long time to come.

Cordially,
[/tab]
[tab name=’Guidelines’]

Guidelines: Disapproving

Disapproving Raises, Promotions, or Transfers for Your Staff

Guidelines and Alternate Phrases

• Begin on a positive note; acknowledge the request and thank the employee for his accomplishments, initiative, new idea, or at least interest in assuming new responsibilities.
• Thank you for offering to help us out in the Detroit area. From all appearances, we need something to happen there fast.
• I appreciate your writing to let us know of your interest in transferring to our new location at the end of the summer.
• We received your letter outlining the ways you would like to contribute to our success here at Glamore and Associates.
• Thank you for being so candid with your expectations about your future responsibilities here at Bryan-Westin.
• Thank you for forwarding your résumé and information packet with the summary of your accomplishments here.
• We are always pleased to receive new ideas from employees for ways to grow–even if that might involve a complete restructuring as you outlined.
• Give adequate reasons for declining a raise or promotion. If the employee’s performance is deficient in some areas, point those areas out in a positive way and tell him/her specifically how he/she can improve and what your standards of measurement are. If “no money” is the claim, be convincing. Be careful with this reason, however, so you don’t start financial-problem rumors that may create panic among the ranks. If you have no freedom to grant raises because salaries follow pre-existing guidelines, explain that.
• All promotions have been put on hold for the next six months.
• I simply have no more budget to work with this year.
• We feel a promotion at this time would be premature–that is, until you have gained more experience with the System AZ2 and are able to make service calls unaccompanied.
• The review committee has already decided they would like to bring someone in from the outside to get a new perspective on our expansion efforts.
• We believe we need someone in that position who can travel extensively at a moment’s notice.
• We have decided transfers to the new office should first be offered to our qualified employees with at least 10 years’ service here.
• The rumors you’ve probably heard are true. We simply are being forced to freeze our salaries at the current level.
• Meet the employee’s need for recognition in another way, if possible, such as a title change or participation in another employee benefit program.
• State under what conditions you may change your mind about the decision. Promise later review or state circumstances that may alter the present situation. If, on the other hand, you would like to see the employee leave, tactfully wish him success in “finding something that may give you the opportunities you deserve.”
• I’ve identified one particular area that we need to work on in the next few months: problem-solving with customers.
• I have decided the promotion would be inappropriate primarily for one reason–the increased customer contact necessary in that position. There have been some past problems with difficult customers, and I’d like us to work on further improvement in that regard.
• While your telephone skills are certainly adequate, I think organization would be a problem with the increased coordination required for scheduling. Why don’t we spend some concentrated time on improving your organizational skills?
• Should you receive this additional training, please bring that to our attention.
• If the new product gets the go-ahead, we will be in touch again and resume these discussions about how you can work with us then.
• If we do have a vacancy that calls for the skills that you can bring to the job, we will be happy to discuss this kind of promotion then.
• Commend the employee for his or her past contributions to the company, or personal strengths or skills.
• Thank you for your past contributions to our efforts here in Harrisburg.
• We think you’ve done a fine job for us over the past two years.
• We’ve noticed and appreciated your contributions in your present position, an important one in our estimation.
• Thank you for serving the organization so well in your current position.
• Your skills have been just what we’ve needed in your present position. Thank you for your energy and enthusiasm for the tasks there.
• We certainly have been impressed with your past performance.
• We appreciate your loyalty.
• We appreciate your willingness to learn new things and contribute in any way we need you.
• We value your eagerness to learn and grow in the job.
• We are pleased to have you working with us here at Capital Associates.
• Thank you for your contributions to our past growth.
• Thank you for sharing your technical expertise with us.
• We appreciate your new ideas and your willingness to discuss them with us.
• We have the same objectives in mind–satisfied employees and profitability. Thank you for helping us achieve both.
• Thank you for your outstanding work in coordinating our workshops.
• We are so pleased to know of your commitment to our success here. We want to work toward helping you grow into the jobs you feel are in line with your interests.
• We continue to be very pleased with the excellent service you’re giving our customers. Thank you for that effort.

[/tab]
[tab name=’Example 11′]

Example 11: Disapprove the raises request

Company Name or Letterhead
Address
City, State Zip

Date

Addressee
Address
City, State Zip

Dear Flo:

Thank you for writing to let us know of your interest in assuming the position of regional sales director. Should I assume the frustration involved in landing the new Hico account generated that itch to move? Seriously, we appreciate the difficulty of that account and your fine effort in closing the sale.

We are hesitant, I’m afraid, to put you in the newly created regional sales director position for several reasons. The position, as we envision it, will require extensive managerial skills because of the scattered sales force, the demands of a brand-new market, and the difficulties we’ve had in finding distributors in the region. Although you’ve certainly been an excellent sales rep for us, we believe we need someone with several years’ management experience in this new spot.

If you are interested in assuming a managerial role, I’d suggest you let your immediate supervisor know that and then avail yourself of our in-house management training programs. We think it’s essential that all our managers complete the Victor Profile program. After you’ve acquired this additional training and find you’re still interested in a supervisory position, bring that to our attention again.

We appreciate the outstanding sales record you continue to build here at Glaydon.

Sincerely,
[/tab]
[tab name=’Example 12′]

Example 12: Rejection letter sample

Company Name or Letterhead
Address
City, State Zip

Date

Addressee
Address
City, State Zip

Dear John:

A few days ago you asked me to consider promoting you to assume the position vacated by Tom Post. We appreciate your interest in the growth of the company and in your own managerial skills and development.

In order to assure myself that our annual review of responsibilities and compensation had been done properly, I asked two other managers individually to help me look at your compensation package in relationship to your responsibilities, your performance, your results, and the way you support the company’s goals. Then they were to compare their findings with the compensation of select peers, subordinates, and superiors.

We all independently came to the conclusion that you are well compensated within the WAC structure, which we are satisfied is a good one. We are pleased with your progress but do not feel that adding other responsibilities would be appropriate until the $3.5M backlog is reduced. This reduction in backlog will be a grand achievement as far as we’re concerned. If you think that we have overlooked some other valuable contributions on your part and would like to pursue this further at the end of the year, I’ll be glad to do so.

Thank you for your willingness to persevere with a difficult situation.

Sincerely,
[/tab]
[tab name=’Example 13′]

Example 13: Reject promotion request letters

Company Name or Letterhead
Address
City, State Zip

Date

Addressee
Address
City, State Zip

Dear Chuck:

We’ve spent much time in the past few weeks reviewing your situation and your request for a promotion, and we do appreciate your interest in understanding how you fit into the company’s goals.

The principal objectives we have for your current position are outlined below:

• To find a sufficient quantity of steel to meet our requirements and to do this at the lowest possible price
• To see the plant continues to function at our optimal requirements
• To report clearly to management what we are doing to increase productivity and reduce cost

The importance of your position to the company will be measured by your effectiveness in meeting the above criteria. It’s important to both you and the company to know whether you can function effectively on that basis and if you plan to devote your best efforts to do so.

Please let us know your thoughts about this immediately so, if you are unwilling to continue in your present position, we can develop alternate plans to see these very important functions are carried out.

Sometime in the future our emphasis may change, and we will look for greater expansion and diversification. I can’t predict when that may be, but we are now satisfied our present operations are under good control and are giving us all the return we can expect.

I’ll look forward to having your response about continuing in your present position. We hope you’ll agree this position still holds a challenge for you. We have seen your management skills grow and appreciate your past efforts.

Sincerely,
[/tab]
[tab name=’Example 14′]

Example 14: Disapproving promotion request letters

Company Name or Letterhead
Address
City, State Zip

Date

Addressee
Address
City, State Zip

Dear Marietta:

Thank you for being patient while I reviewed your request for promotion to administrative assistant in the executive suite.

I want to commend you on your efforts to participate in all the training courses offered in-house for clerical staff. Continuing education is a must for all of us to be adequately prepared in this high-tech industry. Accordingly, we feel strongly whoever assumes the position of admininstrative assistant must have a CPS certification. Such recognition assures us and our customers all of our projects will be handled with the utmost professionalism.

If somewhere in your personnel file we have overlooked a notation of your CPS certification, please call that to our attention immediately. Should you make plans to work toward that certification, let us know when you have completed and received that designation.

We are very pleased with the fine work you’re doing in your current job and have had nothing but glowing commendations from your present supervisor. Because of this excellent performance, we would like to ask you to consider transferring to the purchasing department to learn a new area of the business. If such a transfer interests you, let Bill Hargroves (ext. 3456) know immediately.

Cordially,
[/tab]
[tab name=’Example 15′]

Example 15: Reject position request

Memorandum

TO:

FROM:

DATE:

SUBJECT: Administrative Assistant Position

Thank you for reminding me what significant contributions you have made to the department during the past two years. I do particularly value your initiative in restructuring our filing system and also your willingness to relieve the surveyors of the “routine” matters as you have had time. As I mentioned in your last performance appraisal, you are the kind of dependable employee we’d like to keep.

As you know, however, we have not hired any new employees in the past three months due to economic conditions in the industry as a whole. Likewise, money budgeted for raises has been frozen until we see some turnaround in contract sales. But in light of your present skills and duties, I’d like to change your job title to Administrative Assistant, without all the additional duties outlined in your memo, and, I’m sorry to say, without a raise at this time. Even though your assuming such tasks would relieve surveyors of routine paperwork, I’m afraid with such a sluggish economy their increased time would not necessarily lead to increased business.

Please do know, however, I have noted your accomplishments and plan to give these added responsibilities and commensurate raise further attention. Perhaps when business picks up so we hire an additional three surveyors, we can then assign you additional duties and hire extra secretarial help as you outlined.
[/tab]
[end_tabset]