Opportunities for promotions to positions as superintendents and district managers are frequent, and the tendency is toward the retention and development of efficient employees indefinitely.
PLAN No. 1097. OFFICE MANAGEMENT
This position is one that is usually filled by promotion and one to which any man who qualifies for business by taking a complete commercial training may reasonably aspire. Men who have executive ability; knowledge of men and ability to handle them; the ability to organize the work of an office on an efficiency basis; and a good general knowledge of business are needed for office managers.
Training
Extension courses in preparation for advancement to this grade of commercial employment are available in many places. Those who already have the necessary training for office work will be helped by definite courses of instruction to prepare for this desirable line of promotion. Others who have had neither business training nor business experience may prepare for office work first in accordance with the plan suggested earlier in this monograph, and may later qualify for office management by extension courses under the direction of the Federal Board for Vocational Education.
PLAN No. 1098. BANKING
The banking business is one in which the higher positions are usually recruited from the lower. Many younger men are employed as messengers, clerks, runners, etc., and it is comparatively easy to find promotion material already in the organization. Since these lower positions pay very small salaries and make no appeal to men, it is not likely that large numbers of men will break into the banking business through rehabilitation channels. However there are many men in our Army who have had banking experience and desire to secure training for further promotion in this business. Then, too, some of the larger financial institutions in the big cities are in the habit of taking on men for a period of training with a view to service in their foreign branches. This practice will grow as our foreign trade expands. Men who have the necessary general education and special training, supplemented by overseas service, will find in this field an opportunity that will challenge their interest.
Training
Foundation work in the general business subjects such as bookkeeping, business writing, business English, correspondence, business arithmetic, and commercial law will be followed by instruction in economics, money, banking, and finance. While there are comparatively few business schools equipped to give the more advanced technical instruction required, the Federal Board for Vocational Education will aid any man who is interested in this business, not only to secure adequate training for it, but also an opportunity to enter this field under the most favorable circumstances possible.