Promoting the right people is one of the most critical decisions a leader can make—but all too often, internal promotions don’t work out as expected.

In this episode, we explore the most common mistakes in internal promotions—and, most importantly, how to avoid them. We discuss:

• The mistake of confusing past performance with future potential
• The lack of clarity and transparency about what’s truly needed for the next-level role—beyond the job description
• How the Performance-Potential Matrix can help you take a more structured a highly effective approach to succession planning
• Why waiting too long to address promotion mistakes can be costly—and how to course-correct effectively
• How leaders can make internal promotions a continuous, low-risk process instead of a high-stakes event

Reflection Questions

• As a leader, how important is talent development to me? Do I spend sufficient time, or does it always get the lowest priority and then I end up trying to fire fight in the very end because I need to make a quick decision?
• What have I done today in terms of talent development and succession planning? Were there opportunities where I could check on people, whether they demonstrated certain skills and competencies that would either qualify them for a different role, or have they shown certain behavior, which is a bit of an alarm bell saying this person might not be so suitable for a particular role? And if I do this regularly, can I see a bigger picture?

About Second Crack
More information about us and our work is available on our website: secondcrackleadership.com. Contact us now to explore how we can support your leadership development in a company-wide initiative or with individual executive coaching: hello@secondcrackleadership.com.

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Martin Aldergård
Gerrit Pelzer