Given the importance of succession planning, many organizations spend a great deal of time trying to identify the managers who have what it takes to advance and take on additional responsibility. But what really sets apart leaders who are exceptional in their current positions and are seen as having potential for more challenging roles from the exceptional leaders who are not seen as having potential?
To help answer this question, OnPoint Consulting, in partnership with the American Management Association, collected data on the effectiveness of 622 managers across organizations including government agencies, non-profits, multi-nationals, Fortune 500, and Fortune 1000 organizations.
We found that two competencies (out of a possible 46) differentiated exceptional managers who were seen as having the potential to take on more challenging roles from exceptional managers who were not perceived to be ready: managing and leading change and critical and analytical thinking.
Strong analytical and critical thinking (which involves questioning basic assumptions, applying sound reasoning and judgment, understanding the complexity of an issue and breaking it into manageable pieces, and understanding the implications of data and information) appears to be a building block for managerial success, and, when coupled with solid interpersonal skills, produces a strong leadership profile. Clearly some people are more proficient in this area, due to personal preferences or experience, but critical thinking is a learned skill that can be developed and improved through practice.
Managing and leading change frequently comes up as a critical factor in managerial effectiveness. However, in OnPoint’s study on how top-performing companies prepare for and manage change, only 46% of the 655 managers who responded believe that change is managed effectively in their organizations and 43% lack confidence that current organizational changes will be implemented effectively.
Based on our research, the core behavior of the most effective change managers is modeling behaviors that support the change. This goes beyond verbally endorsing a change. It is exemplified by specific actions such as: behaving in a way that is consistent with the change; doing what they say they will do related to the change; engaging people in dialogue about the change even when they don’t have all the answers; being aligned with other managers; and ensuring the timing of change is realistic.
Because competence in critical and analytical thinking and managing and leading change appear to be linked to perceptions about the potential of exceptional leaders, focusing training and development efforts in these areas would help increase the likelihood that leaders are prepared to advance and take on additional levels of responsibility.
