PERCEIVED INTRA-ORGANIZATIONAL MOBILITY - RELIABLE VERSUS EXCEPTIONALPERFORMANCE AS MEANS TO GETTING AHEAD

'Work hard and get ahead' is a fundamental tenet of modem organization s, but employees have different interpretations of what it means to 'w ork hard' and perceive that there are multiple channels to 'get ahead' . The current research explores employees' perceptions of the factors affecting their intra-organizational upward mobility. Results using a survey instrument in a large American medical college show that employ ees can distinguish among intra-organizational mobility channels based on reliable role performance, on exceptional role performance, and on non-performance factors such as personal characteristics (e.g. race a nd gender), or luck and favoritism. Perceptions of mobility channels a re related to such organizationally relevant outcomes as employee sati sfaction and turnover intentions. Occupational sub-groups, however, pe rceive different structures for upward mobility.