"Why having a name that's easy to pronounce could propel you up the career ladder"

From The Daily Mail:

If you wonder why you're always being passed over for promotion, then there might finally be a solution... change your name.

People with a name that is more easily pronounced have better prospects of climbing the career ladder, a study as found. Researchers looked at how the way names are said can influence impressions and decision making.

Dr Simon Lahamschvinski, junior researcher at the University of Melbourne which carried out the study, said their were subtle biases that we are not aware of that affect our decisions. "Research findings revealed that the effect is not due merely to the length of a name or how foreign-sounding or unusual it is, but rather how easy it is to pronounce. Such an appreciation may help us de-bias our thinking, leading to fairer, more objective treatment of others. Instead of constantly passing them over for promotion."

Their research means that rather than their technological wizardry, the success of the likes of Bill Gates and Larry Page could actually be down to their names. However, the success of Mark Zuckerpuckerpapabergalosovitch shows that there are exceptions to the rule. Luckily, Mr Z decided against "ZuckerpuckerpapabergalosovitchBook" at the last moment and plumped for "Facebook" instead.

Dr Adam Ant, head of the New York University Stern School of Business which also took part in the study said; "This research is complete bollocks. Actually, people are easily impressed by tricky sounding or foreign names. It's been a real struggle for me to become Head of this department".