Appropriate Interview Panel Members - Current Supervisor?

I was recently in a panel interview at work. The position I was applying for was an internal position in a different department. The interview panel was made up of people that I knew (hiring manager, HR and another manager at the company). This seems like a completely normal interview, except the other manager on the panel ended up being my current manager!

Does this seem inappropriate? My manager obviously didn't want me to leave my current position, but he is supposed to objectively decide if I should get the new job?

Looking at the hiring guidelines at my company, I don't see anything that references a situation like this, nor can I find anything online about it. The interview went well and there were only a couple awkward moments, but when I left the room, I couldn't help but think there was something wrong with that situation.

Any thoughts???

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This is a terrific question. I can see how there may be some conflict of interest here but I'll also tell you that any time an employee moves internally, the current supervisor is usually at some point consulted.

In your case it was during the interview process so there were perhaps some awkward moments. My first thought would be to ask if you have annual reviews with your supervisor? If so, do you discuss career paths? I ask because if your supervisor were aware of your goals, he/she could be an asset in such a panel.

If it were my company, I would not have the current supervisor on the panel as a general rule, only because if the person is the direct supervisor, there could be repercussions if anything interpreted as negative were said.

I can also see where that supervisor would have to be on the panel if that person had a specific expertise that was unique in the company. I can also see a reason in smaller companies where there may not be an abundance of options.

So, while I would not recommend it, I can see valid reasons for having a supervisor on the panel though it is not the ideal scenario in a panel interview.