Our consultants at Navigos Search have seen a fair share of top talent leaving their companies due to the lack of advancement opportunities. This situation will apply to your organisation if there is no promotion plan in place for your employees.

A recent study by Matthew Bidwell at Wharton on 5,300 employees in multiple jobs, from traders and research analysts to support staff, showed that internal recruits score better on performance reviews and are 61% less likely to be fired from their new jobs than those recruited externally.

As employers, you are better off establishing a company culture that embraces internal promotion to retain top talent. These are several steps you should take in order to improve the effectiveness of your promotion process.

Step 1: List Required Skills.

You want your new managerial candidates to have suitable skill sets and meet the demands of the managerial position. Mandatory skills include the ability to strategise, plan, lead work groups, guide junior staff, manage budgets and problem-solve.

Step 2: Identify Viable Candidates.

Look around and seek employees that meet all the pre-set requirements. There may be more than one person that matches your criteria.

Step 3: Add Other Criteria.

You can consider other criteria to choose the most suitable internal candidate. For example, a senior employee may have considerable professional experience but could lack mandatory leadership skills like motivating or coaching.

Step 4: Provide Challenges.

After identifying shortlisted candidates, give them the authority over a project with a scale smaller than the one they may handle if promoted. Pay close attention to how these employees perform to make the correct decision.

Step 5: Actively Support.

You need to support the newly promoted manager by officially announcing the advancement to related departments and explain explicitly about his or her responsibilities. This helps the selected individual avoid unexpected obstacles when supervising former colleagues. In the first few months, hold periodic meetings to discuss challenges and provide guidance. —  Source: Navigos Search