Making Progress at Progress Software (A)

In this case, the Human Capital team at Progress Software has identified that some employees have a hard time understanding how to advance within Progress. This realization leads the team to develop several major people-process innovations: the introduction of clear-cut, widely accessible leveling information as well as the development of several other programs, among them an internal mobility program that calls for quarterly conversations between managers and direct reports about professional development called “Career Conversations.” The case details the development of these programs and asks students to consider why some employees might have a harder time than others accessing career information and how managers could play a role in that imbalance.