Approximately 25 percent of all middle and top management personnel openly admit that they do not know what the future holds for them.

They have no career plans and believe that over the next five years their career direction will be determined strictly on the basis of openings that occur in the upper ranks due to retirement or resignation. Another 7 percent of the managers candidly admit that they are looking for jobs with other organizations because they feel that if the organization had any long-range career plans for them, they would have been informed about these plans by now. Lacking such knowledge they can only surmise that they are not going to be promoted in the near future. A review of the performance appraisal files of these latter 7 percent shows that most of them are regarded as superior performers and, if they stay with the firm, will eventually be promoted.LO.1