How do you assess and develop the potential and readiness of your internal talent pool?

1 Identify your talent needs

The first step is to identify your current and future talent needs based on your business goals, market trends, and skills gaps. You can use a variety of methods, such as workforce planning, talent mapping, and competency modeling, to analyze your talent supply and demand. This will help you determine which roles are critical, which skills are in high demand, and which employees are ready or have the potential to move up or across the organization.

2 Assess your talent pool

The next step is to assess your talent pool using objective and consistent criteria. You can use a combination of tools, such as performance reviews, 360-degree feedback, psychometric tests, and career conversations, to evaluate your employees' strengths, weaknesses, interests, and aspirations. You can also use a talent matrix or a 9-box grid to plot your employees' performance and potential on a scale. This will help you identify your high-potentials, high-performers, and low-performers, and tailor your development and retention strategies accordingly.

3 Develop your talent pipeline

The third step is to develop your talent pipeline by providing your employees with opportunities to grow and learn. You can use a variety of methods, such as mentoring, coaching, training, job rotation, stretch assignments, and cross-functional projects, to help your employees acquire new skills, gain exposure, and expand their network. You can also use a career pathing or a career lattice tool to help your employees explore different career options and plan their next steps. This will help you increase your employees' motivation, engagement, and loyalty, and prepare them for future roles.

4 Monitor and measure your outcomes

The final step is to monitor and measure your outcomes by tracking and evaluating your internal mobility and succession program. You can use a variety of metrics, such as retention rate, turnover rate, promotion rate, internal hire rate, time to fill, cost per hire, and employee satisfaction, to measure your program's effectiveness and impact. You can also use feedback surveys, focus groups, and interviews to collect qualitative data and insights from your employees and managers. This will help you identify your program's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and challenges, and make adjustments as needed.