Job titles are important. A proper job title explains the nature and level of work performed by the employee holding it. In the same way that a customer may exclaim, “I’d like to speak with a Manager” – there is an expectation about the role one plays in an organization based on their title. In this example, the expectation is to speak to someone with decision-making authority.
Title creep or title inflation happens in every industry no matter the size or age of an organization. The most common scenario is that an organization will invent new titles or new levels to existing titles in attempt to reward specific employees or attract a specific candidate. The circumstances that create this ‘need’ are many: limited growth opportunities, uncompetitive starting wages, ineffective salary ranges, small annual pay increases, employees reaching the maximum of their pay range, an employee demanding a promotion, high turnover rates, wanting to reward loyalty, etc.
Actually, most of those reasons are money-related. An organization either doesn’t have the money and an inflated title is the trade-off or the organization’s hands are tied in giving more money unless they create a new title (which then creates a new pay range).
Titles are free
In the first instance, the assumption is that a title promotion is cheap or even free. In the short-term, that may be the case. In the long-term, it may hurt more than it helps. To start, titles are emotional. They are often tied to our identities and reflect our worth – or, at least, society will assume your worth based on your job title. Some people will aspire their whole lives to reach a certain ‘level’ in their career and that achievement can be cheapened by inflating titles, both for that employee and for adjacent employees. This is because a job title indicates the pecking order in an organization. Like the Receptionist alternatively titled as the “Director of First Impressions” – those inside and outside the organization might be confused or even frustrated to learn the person in that role is not actually a Director. Further, if title inflation is a widespread practice and everyone is a Director, then no one is a Director. If it’s an isolated circumstance, you risk creating cultural issues in which employees might perceive the ‘promotion’ as unfair treatment.
In the reverse, if you were trying to hire a candidate that inflated their past titles on their resume, you would be given an unfair representation of their skillset. Therefore, inflating a job title beyond the intended role (or skillset) is doing the organization, and the employee, a disservice.
