[mattgreenrocks]

Agree. I wouldn't say it's broken; the somewhat-overlapping Venn Diagram metaphor is apt. But like many other domains of power, there's a persistent belief that those who are recognized (promoted) are indeed the best candidates and that false negatives eventually correct themselves.

Believing otherwise is psychologically dangerous: if the system is somewhat arbitrary, then that opens up the possibility that their promotion was also somewhat arbitrary and not under their control.