Despite the importance of employees’ perceived overqualification in career development and adaptive performance, previous studies have neglected that overqualification being visible to their leaders exerts great influence. Extending this line of research, this study examines the effect of (in)congruence between employee self-perceived overqualification (EEOQ) and leader-perceived employee overqualification (LEOQ) on employee promotion expectancy and adaptive performance. We suggest that the more aligned the EEOQ and LEOQ, the higher the employees’ promotion expectancy, which is higher when the EEOQ is underestimated rather than overestimated. We also propose the moderating role of leader bottom-line mentality in the relationship between EOQ (in)congruence and employee promotion expectancy, such that the relationship between EOQ congruence and promotion expectancy is more positive when leader bottom-line mentality is lower rather than higher, while employee promotion expectancy is higher under EEOQ underestimation when leader bottom-line mentality is higher rather than lower. To test these hypotheses, we conducted a multi-source, multi-time survey. Data were collected from 259 employees and 109 leaders of a mining manufacturing company in southern China. Most of the hypotheses were supported, except for the moderating role of the leader’s bottom-line mentality in the relationship between EOQ incongruence and employee promotion expectancy. The results of our study provide novel insights into the effect of perceived overqualification on employees’ career development and performance by considering a leader perspectives.
