Why Offering Lateral Moves Might Be More Motivating Than a Promotion

While pay can retain talent, studies show it’s not the primary reason an employee chooses to stay. A recent report from MIT Sloan Management Review found that the opportunity to make a lateral move was two and a half times more important than salary and 12 times more effective than offering a promotion. The pandemic has weighed heavily on people during the past two years, and many have taken the time to reconsider how they want to spend their time, both personally and professionally. More work—even if it comes with a better title and a bump in pay—doesn’t appeal right now. “Leaders too frequently think the only way to reward people is to give them a promotion,” MIT senior lecturer Donald Sull says. “But some people have families or outside interests and don’t want the additional responsibilities and time commitment a promotion would entail.”