Over the years, leadership development and succession have been dominated by a select group of individuals who have made decisions based on a narrow set of criteria. As a result of these limitations, many organizations have been unable to adapt to a changing world due to a lack of leadership diversity.
But how do we change this? How do we get started?
The first step is to have a new approach to leadership selection:
Organizations have talent, but they have high-potential employees. The problem lies in stagnant mindsets, outdated practices and insufficient succession planning strategies. In place of proactively identifying and developing the next generation of leaders, organizations are making quick decisions to fill leadership gaps.
The next step is to develop a Leadership Selection Strategy that incorporates the four predictors of performance.
1. Prior experiences and achievements
Identify and outline essential experiences that are critical to success.
2. Innate tendencies
Structured behavioural interviews can relieve interviewers' biases and help decision-makers compare candidates' abilities more effectively.
3. Multiple rounds of screening
Combining multiple interviewers' perceptions, impressions, and ratings, a candidate can communicate with various decision-making team members, and one interviewer's "filter does not solely determine a candidate's fit".
4. On-the-job observation
To give the hiring team a glimpse of how the leader might express their talents in the role, it is necessary to collect observations of real-life performance during work projects and leadership development opportunities.
Today's changing workforce requires leaders and managers to meet those needs confidently and inspire greatness in their teams. It's Time for Change Traditional leadership development and succession planning have brought us here, but they won't get us there.
We need thoughtful systems to guide our decision-making as we make decisions and identify suitable candidates for leadership positions. Organizations must actively engage employees in identifying and developing their leadership potential early in their careers.