An area of talent management that is getting more traction today is career development.  Over the last couple of years, we have seen a focus first on performance management, then on leadership development, followed by succession planning.  So it is not surprising that career development is starting to emerge as the next big area for companies to address.

In conversations with companies like IBM, Chevron and Mercer, it is apparent that there are two tracks for career development – one that is focused on the functional / technical expertise and one focused on leadership growth.   If we look at Figure 1, we can see how this might happen.

Figure 1: Professional and Management Career Paths

However, in the case of true “career development” the intersection of functional and leadership paths must occur in order to help people in a functional role move “up the ladder” of development to improve their levels of contribution, span of control, salary, and professional expertise.

For example, in the IT area a software programmer career may evolve from trainee, to staff programmer, to senior developer, to principal developer, to manager of software development to director of development, to vice president of IT.  In the healthcare profession a nursing career may evolve from a trainee to a staff nurse professional to a senior nursing professional to a nursing supervisor to either a specialized nurse professional or a director of nursing and then even a vice-president of hospital administration.

The two roles – of a functional expert and a leader - do merge as you get higher in the organization.  Think about the senior vice president of research at IBM, which is not at all the same as the senior vice president of manufacturing or the senior vice president of sales.  While there are some common leadership skills that are necessary, their roles require different ways of managing and leading. (See Figure 2.) It is at the crossroads of the function and varying management levels that there are unique developmental needs. 

Figure 2: Intersection of Functional and Leadership Development

Theoretically, these tracks merge at some point (a sales director is still in sales); but most company's development models don't include this intersection – instead they provide development of sales skills separate from the development of leadership skills. Why aren’t more companies providing functional-specific leadership development?    The lack of competency models, job profiles and career paths in many organizations plays a big role.  What do you think?

We welcome direct feedback from you on this exciting topic. Let us know where your organization stands with these activities.  Please feel free to share your experiences and opinions – and the questions you'd like to see our research uncover. Send me an email at kim.lamoureux@bersin.com.

Thanks,
Kim