In today’s fast paced world, it is challenging for companies to have a consistent, ready pipeline of candidates to take on mission-critical roles at any level of the organization. It’s easy for companies to focus on achieving targets and goals while crossing fingers and hoping their highest performers never leave. Unfortunately, with the average job tenure at only 3 years, it is inevitable that at some point, they will. How will companies address this challenge? They must plan for it and take a strategic approach in executing the plan. Organizations that have a short-term ad hoc approach to building their talent pipeline lag in growth and innovation and struggle to stay competitive in a dynamic market.

Creating a talent pipeline will be increasingly more important as we consider the global talent shortage. In the past 10 years, nearly every county in the United States saw its working-age population decline, and the number of graduates from our education and training institutions, a primary source of talent, is insufficient to keep up with market demand. Consider the past several years of Baby Boomer exits from the job market. During the third quarter of 2020, about thirty million Baby Boomers left the job market to retire, according to the Pew Research Center. Unforeseen events like the Covid-19 pandemic are reasons to build a strong talent pipeline. The pandemic’s impact devastated many sectors such as healthcare, manufacturing, and transportation. In 2021 and 2022, when organizations needed to aggressively hire back talent, companies with strong talent pipelines fared much better than those that did not have them.

Even with anticipated events like retirements, growth, or an entry into a new market, far too often companies fail to have a plan to ensure they have qualified (internal and external) individuals ready to take on roles before the need arises. The best companies are prepared for these changes and understand that having the right talent, at the right time, in the right roles is a key differentiator to help them win.

With talent pipelines, you get what you plan for. A strong talent pipeline enables the organization to be prepared for both the planned and unexpected.If employers want to future-proof their organizations, they must take a proactive approach, and this requires careful orchestration.

Here are 5 Things to Remember When Creating a Strong Talent Pipeline

1. Understand your organization’s strategic direction before building your pipeline plan, and consider the roles most crucial for meeting current and future business goals. Ask “What are our growth plans and what types of talent is needed to execute them?”  Consider whether the plan requires entry into new regions, as you will need to understand the available talent in the local market.
2. Conduct an internal talent assessment to identify and evaluate existing employees and potential candidates. The assessment helps to uncover gaps in your current talent pool so you can identify specific areas for developing people internally. It can include a variety of methods such as structured interviews, assessments, performance evaluations, and creating profiles or personas for every critical role. Building role profiles is important because it answers the question, “what are the most skills and capabilities required for success in the role?”  The process for building the profile should involve perspectives from multiple stakeholders who have the best insights into the job. The profiles should be clearly communicated to talent acquisition partners to support better selection outcomes.
3. Nurture your external talent pool. Building a reliable pipeline that is consistently nurtured even when there are no current openings is golden and can save time and money. Forge new relationships with candidates, add them to your social networks, and keep them informed of what is going on in the company. Don’t forget your alumni base! This is an excellent source for future talent. If they voluntarily left, track where they landed and keep in touch. If they were laid off, they could be your biggest cheerleaders IF their off-boarding experience was managed with compassion and respect. Including high quality outplacement services in severance packages will demonstrate the company’s commitment to a positive employee life-cycle experience.
4. Create a positive candidate experience. David Bernstein describes the candidate experience as a hiring journey that is a sum of “micro-experiences.”  Each touch point in the experience is a moment of truth; an opportunity to leave a positive or negative lasting impression. Creating exceptional candidate experiences is important, as it helps to attract the best people and keeps them in your talent pool. On the other hand, a poor experience can damage their perception of your company forever. One of the top complaints of job seekers is being ghosted even after several rounds of interviews. What’s worse is that they share these negative experiences with others. Unfortunately, far too many internal candidates report similar experiences. Treat internal and external candidates as valued employees. Give them personalized attention in all messaging, communicate frequently, and keep the communication open. The idea is to gain advocates – people who will speak highly of your company and recommend it to others, whether or not they are hired.
5. Prepare leaders to succeed. The top two reasons for leadership underperformance are lack of attention to succession and poor leadership development practices. Companies must do a better job of sourcing executive and leadership talent from within. To do that they must identify current and future leadership skills necessary to successfully drive their unique business plan and culture, then continually develop and assess leaders against these skills.

Leader development should start with a comprehensive and immersive onboarding process and continue throughout an employee’s career, tailored to their progression through the ranks. It must be multi-faceted to include exposure to other executives and networks, special assignments, job rotations, executive coaching, and experience with boards for CEO and C-Suite levels. Instill a “development culture” where all leaders understand their job is not only to identify successors, but also to develop them.

Constant unpredictable change is our new normal. Companies must protect themselves against a wide range of talent challenges. The world’s top organizations can withstand a crisis and still attract the highest caliber of people. They have a clear understanding of their company’s strategic plan, understand the roles and skills necessary to execute the plan, and proactively cultivate relationships with potential candidates well in advance who are motivated, engaged, and ready to enter the organization. Many companies say that they have a goal of having the best talent on hand at the point of need, but “a goal without a plan is just a wish!” A well-developed talent pipeline strategy is an invaluable asset to any organization.

Don’t wait until the next crisis, build, or enhance your talent pipeline today. Contact us today to learn how we can help future-proof your organization.

Over the past several years talent management leaders have had a strategic seat at the table when tackling some of the corporate world’s most complex challenges such as COVID-19, social unrest, the war on talent, the back-to-work conundrum, and more. HR and talent management (TM) leaders are at the center of all these changes. To lead the organization and help navigate through tumultuous waters, the mindset of the talent management leader is key. 

But does mindset really matter? Consider, for example, that when Microsoft’s CEO, Satya Nadella, came into leadership, drastically shifting the mindset of his leaders was his primary focus. This was not just a leadership development initiative, but an effort to transform their “thinking”. As a result, the company’s stock price tripled. Interested in learning more? Here are six mindset traits of a successful talent management leader.

6 Mindset Traits of a Successful Talent Management Leader 

1.     Holistic View

The best talent management leaders understand their impact on the entire employee experience; from attracting, onboarding, developing, and promoting talent to offboarding talent and protecting the employer brand. They have a deep understanding the interconnections off all these components and their impact on the culture, strategy, and growth of the organization. Business-aligned talent is known to have a positive impact the bottom line and productivity. The best talent managers are successful in connecting the dots and aligning the company’s people strategy with its organizational strategy and are effective at clearly communicating these connections throughout all levels of the organization. 

2.     Positively Balanced

According to the National Science Foundation, the average person processes about 60,000 -80,000 thoughts per day, with 80% of those being negative. In the day and life of a talent management leader, one can imagine the pressures associated with doing more with less, retaining top talent, upskilling, burn out, and the list goes on. Under such pressures the average leader might choose consciously – or unconsciously – to operate from a myriad of negative emotions (fear, anxiety, blame, guilt, or anger). How does a talent management leader maintain a healthy and balanced mindset? The best talent managers have an uncanny ability to realize the positive in almost any situation. When a challenge arises, they get clear on the problem they’re solving for and are honest about it. They hit “pause” before reacting in the moment. When the situation seems threatening, they think through what might be getting in the way of them making the right decision. They consciously choose to shift their thinking and come from a positive place of courage, optimism, love, compassion, and empathy. 

3.     Confident Humility

Humility is one of the strongest attributes any person can possess. In Latin “humilis” is translated as “grounded”. The best TM leaders show up as confident and humble enough to sincerely serve others while also learning from them. They are confident enough to advise the c-suite and humble enough to receive feedback from those at deeper levels within the organization. How do they do this? No matter how accomplished they are, the never view themselves as better than any other person regardless of rank or position. Humble people understand that they don’t always have to know the answer or appear to have it all together. They are comfortable with vulnerability and understand that kindness is a strength. They relinquish unnecessary control, accept advice from others, and roll with the punches of work and life. 

4.     Resourceful

Great TM leaders understand that they don’t have to do it all. They are great at harnessing resources and rallying others to support initiatives. They develop communities of resources and support in and outside of their organizations. When asked to do more with less, they are able to shift quickly, considering ‘what’s possible?’ By focusing on what is possible, they gain access to new and innovative solutions and can tackle problems on a whole different level to achieve extraordinary results. Lastly, great talent management leaders know their greatest resource is their team and extended teams.  

5.     Limitless Learning

Great talent leaders are lovers of learning. They welcome feedback, are able to effectively problem solve and drive to address root causes, and consistently seek out sustainable solutions. They have a thirst to learn about their organization and the people in it at all levels.  They know that learning opportunities can come at any time; they seize these opportunities to increase their understanding and drive impact. 

6.     Connection

Great talent management leaders understand the beauty and art of building strong and lasting relationships across and up and down their organizations as well as with their families and community. They are energized by connecting with others and getting others connected. They are sought after advisors and eagerly seek out accountability partners, coaches, and mentors to support their own development and growth. The best have a heightened self-awareness of strengths and development opportunities and are clear connected to their “why” both in their work and personal lives. 

It All Comes Down to One Degree of Change

With the forces of volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity compounding at an ever-accelerating rate, it is important for TM and all leaders to help ensure the health and growth of their organizations. Consider the “one degree of change” concept. It only takes a one-degree change in temperature to convert water to steam or water to ice. What if you took on one of the six traits, and each day made tiny shifts in how you’ve been thinking? It all starts, and ends, with your mindset. 

As we restructure our businesses and development plans in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis, many organizations are taking this opportunity to reevaluate the profile of what great leaders look like in their company. Great leaders are hard to find, and identifying leadership potential can be even more difficult. Even the best-laid strategic plans can go awry if an organization fails to build a strong pipeline of future-ready leaders who can navigate the complexities of today’s business world. Your high-potential employees are critical to your organization’s current and future success.

Who are high-potential employees?

The Gartner Glossary defines a high-potential employee (HiPo) as, “someone with the ability, engagement, and aspiration to rise to and succeed in more senior, critical positions.” In other words, they are motivated employees with the potential to become a successful leader. HiPos demonstrate value through drive, accomplishments, and vision. They maintain high expectations of themselves and others, and as such, contribute to a high-performance culture.

Before you can engage a HiPo, you need to understand them and their motivations. HiPos are more energized by being helpful and providing support to colleagues, gaining visibility, and being recognized by their organization. They are less motivated by structure and stability, but are more engaged with risk and change as compared to their peers. 

Identifying high-potential employees

According to a 2017 study by Management Research Group (MRG), the difference between high potentials and other employees is that HiPo candidates tend to think more strategically, demonstrate strong problem-solving and decision-making abilities, and have a stronger orientation toward achievement. Besides exhibiting the qualities of a leader, a HiPo employee also:

• Has a growth mindset – they don’t waste any opportunities to learn from taking risks and making mistakes. With a growth mindset, an employee is also more willing to listen, solve problems, and not let pride get in the way of their work. 
• Collaborates with others – a high-potential candidate can draw a group together and facilitate cooperation among teammates. Additionally, they gladly take on more assignments in order to help their colleagues.
• Exhibits self-awareness – HiPo employees are able to catch more of their own mistakes and are conscious of areas in need of improvement. A self-aware individual is inherently more empathetic towards coworkers as well.

Besides looking for these character traits, it’s important to create a company-specific profile of the ideal HiPo candidate. Below are some helpful tips for developing a unique description for potential leaders in your organization. 

Plan for the future

Understand what your organization will need in the future. Identify anticipated leadership roles and positions, including the officer level, top 2-3% of senior positions, key roles, and hard-to-fill roles. Accordingly, articulate the needs and requirements for each role. This exercise will illuminate the criteria to define your high-potential employees.

Determine the ‘high potential’ criteria for your organization

Based on the above assessment, determine the critical competencies and leadership behaviors that will drive your organization forward. In the current and future landscape, traits of empathy, trust, communication, and the ability to develop and lead virtual teams are keys to success. Of course, these are over and above the typical technical capabilities, business acumen, and high-performance attributes leaders must possess as a baseline. Emphasis should be placed not only on the results, but the methods used to achieve them.

As a caveat, don’t mistake high performance for high potential. It is only one of the essentials to be a HiPo, but not sufficient. 

Make leadership criteria measurable

Take HiPo selection beyond a gut feeling. Make the criteria for potential leaders quantifiable and record the progress of each candidate. The exercise of measuring ensures progress is monitored and the process is objective and transparent.

There are valid and reliable research tools such as the Leadership Effectiveness Analysis (LEA), Leadership Circle Profile, and Korn Ferry 360 that can help an organization measure its HiPo competencies. When used in conjunction with interviews, assessments can help you accurately identify and select HiPo candidates that align with your criteria and demonstrate the behaviors you want to see in your organization. Don’t forget to cascade this process through the ranks to provide clarity on key behaviors needed to succeed throughout the organization.

What is a HiPo development program?

A high-potential program is a designated framework of career development plans and experiences specifically tailored for employees with high leadership potential. They give HiPo employees a chance to see their company from the view of an executive and provide learning opportunities for growth. BMW, General Electric, and Sony have used HiPo development programs that allow employees to try multiple roles in a short amount of time. This lets the employee discover different facets of the company and learn critical skills for key positions.

By creating a high-potential development program, you engage with HiPo employees, make them feel valued, and retain your top talent. Creating these career coaching and development tracks also engages current senior staff to take on mentorship roles. Overall, a HiPo program can influence company culture on nearly every level.

Considerations for a HiPo development program

When creating a career plan for your HiPos, take a personalized approach, get current leaders involved, and incentivize progress through recognition and rewards. You’ll want to find ways to push your leaders and find and improve their weaknesses while motivating them to perform to their fullest. Implement a multi-faceted development program that includes the following considerations to help your HiPo employees reach their full potential and generate real business results.

Rotational assignments

Give HiPo program candidates experience and exposure to multiple business practices with well-planned, rotational (short-term) assignments that stretch their abilities. Rotational assignments place employees in new roles and situations — either in another department or region — usually to identify and develop skill gaps. Tailor each rotation to support a desired outcome for the individual and organization, and base it on your HiPo employee’s specific developmental needs.

On-site coaching

Challenge your assumption that executive coaching is only reserved for senior executives. Organizations now recognize on-site coaching as an effective way to accelerate and strengthen HiPo development. With insights from 360 feedback and interviews, the coach and HiPo can target key strengths and blind spots, and prioritize areas of development.

Action learning

Some of the most impactful learning experiences involve challenging individuals or cohort teams to tackle immediate business goals or needs, such as enterprise-wide projects. With coaching and mentoring to support participants, the action learning team can own the process and learn first-hand the impact of cooperation to achieve success. Teams then present their findings and recommendations to senior leadership.

Give them opportunities

Ensure leadership candidates are moved into the roles for which they were being developed. The biggest disservice organizations do to themselves and their HiPo leaders is to bypass the process with wildcard entries. Creating internal mobility is imperative to having a sustainable HiPo development plan.

Integrate the process in succession planning

The process of identifying high-potentials needs to be part of succession planning. Envision a designated, ideal role for each HiPo along with actionable goals to get them into said critical position. Only then can the HiPos be given development opportunities appropriate for the roles for which they are being trained.

Train your leaders on the process

While putting the process in place is the first step, don’t assume your leaders will know how to execute it. Train them so they don’t view the process through a lens of their personal biases. Run workshops to ensure reliability and integrate it into the supervisory training along with yearly refreshers.

Create a sustainable HiPo development plan

HiPos are your organization’s future leaders. Take an objective, scientific approach to HiPo selection and give them the best opportunities to learn, grow, and drive your organization forward. Developing and engaging them at every point in their careers will be your biggest competitive advantage.

Expanding your HiPo program with help from a third-party consultancy can ensure a sustainable and engaging leadership development plan. At Keystone Partners, we draw upon decades of experience in multiple industries to create tailored, organization-specific career development plans. Contact Keystone Partners today and discover how we can help you hire, retain, and develop top talent in your organization.

It may feel distant but the day will come when we return to the office. In the meantime, what data can we collect to evolve not only our business continuity plans but also our mindset around virtual work?

Companies can leverage lessons learned to re-evaluate whether work historically required to be completed in the office might switch to a hybrid in-office/remote-if not exclusively remote-schedule.

Potential Gains

Attracting and retaining talent: Job seekers across functions, levels and expertise consistently seek employers who allow for flexibility. Establishing practices that support distance work will make you a more attractive employer to those whose lives demand it.

Real estate: Think back to the gradual shift from rooms full of paper files kept on site to physical and then digital archiving. How could an increase in remote employee contributions have in the footprint of your space? Companies make significant investments to accommodate their workforce. What might your organization save if it traded dedicated space for every worker for shared space/hoteling policies?

Do not judge dips in productivity or engagement too hastily as necessary casualties of remote work without considering the bigger picture. Some impediments to productivity are unique to current events.

The scale of anxiety that people feel right now it at the same time extraordinary and temporary. It extends far beyond an individual’s health concerns to the threats to friends and family, job security, worries about the economy, stress of home schooling, accommodating college students’ return home as they shift to distance learning, and increased competition for space and technology resources while full households are contained in their movements.

Social isolation is a frequently cited downside of remote work in general. In better times we have other outlets for connecting with people in person -cafés, coffee shops, co-working spaces. In Spring of 2020 social isolation is absolute.

Every day we function from home we accumulate evidence of how much “office” work we can accommodate given our removal from business as usual. And every day we learn a little bit more about how work might change when we return to the physical locations of our business.