A common assumption in many organizations is that leadership development begins when someone becomes a leader. In successful practice, the opposite is often true. The competencies that contribute to leadership success are typically developed long before an employee receives a management title.

This distinction matters because organizations often identify future leaders based on strong performance in their current roles. While performance is important, the skills that enable employees to succeed as individual contributors are not always the same skills required to lead others effectively. Employees who excel as technical experts or individual contributors may not yet possess the skills required to lead teams, influence stakeholders, or navigate organizational complexity. When those capabilities have not been developed before promotion, the transition to leadership can become significantly more challenging.

Research suggests that organizations are already struggling with leadership pipeline challenges. Gartner, an American research and advisory firm, found that only 24% of HR leaders believe their leadership bench is capable of meeting future organizational needs.¹

Developing leadership capability before promotion allows organizations to do more than prepare future leaders. It also provides an opportunity to identify leadership strengths, uncover development needs, and evaluate readiness for future leadership responsibilities. By assessing and developing leadership capabilities early, organizations gain greater visibility into leadership readiness and can make more informed succession planning decisions, resulting in reduced risk.² The benefits of proactive training extend beyond individual employees. Organizations with strong leadership pipelines are better positioned to fill critical roles internally, maintain continuity during transitions, and reduce the costs associated with external hiring.³

The challenge for many organizations is determining which employees are ready for additional leadership responsibilities and which competencies they need to develop before promotion. Without a structured way to assess leadership capability, development decisions often rely on subjective impressions rather than objective evidence.

Leadership assessments can help address this challenge. SIGMA’s Leadership Skills Profile – Revised® (LSP-R®) is a leadership assessment designed to measure 50 competencies associated with leadership effectiveness. Organizations can use the assessment to identify leadership strengths, uncover development opportunities, evaluate leadership readiness, and create more targeted development plans for emerging leaders. The assessment is based on SIGMA’s Leadership Competency Framework, which identifies competencies across cognitive leadership skills, interpersonal leadership skills, personal leadership qualities, and senior leadership skills. Several of these competencies are particularly important to develop before an employee assumes formal leadership responsibilities.

What Competencies Should Emerging Leaders Develop?

Many leadership competencies can be developed through project work, cross-functional collaboration, mentoring opportunities, and day-to-day interactions with colleagues. While leadership requirements vary by role and organization, certain competencies are particularly valuable to develop before assuming formal leadership responsibilities:

Communication and Active Listening

Effective leadership begins with the ability to communicate clearly and understand the perspectives of others. Within SIGMA’s framework, Communication focuses on keeping others informed, while Active Listening involves understanding questions, concerns, and perspectives before responding.

Emerging leaders can begin developing these competencies by facilitating meetings, presenting recommendations, providing feedback, and working with colleagues across functions. As leadership responsibilities increase, the ability to exchange information effectively and build mutual understanding becomes increasingly important.

Strategic Planning and Business Acumen

Leadership requires more than delivering results in the present. It also involves understanding where the organization is headed and how to contribute to its long-term success. Business Acumen refers to understanding business operations, trends, and objectives, while Strategic Planning involves establishing long-range goals and understanding what’s required to achieve them.

Employees can begin developing these competencies before promotion by participating in planning discussions, contributing to strategic initiatives, and seeking opportunities to better understand how different parts of the organization function.

Delegation and Facilitating Teamwork

Delegation involves giving others responsibility, authority, and discretion in how they complete their work. Facilitating Teamwork focuses on promoting cooperation, collaboration, and identification with shared goals. Both competencies serve to support and demonstrate trust in one’s team.

Although employees may not yet have direct reports, they can begin developing these competencies by leading projects, coordinating team activities, mentoring colleagues, and creating opportunities for collaboration.

Developing and Coaching Others

One of the most important shifts that occurs during the transition to leadership is moving from personal achievement to collective achievement. The competency Developing/Coaching Others involves supporting the growth and career development of others through feedback, developmental discussions, and meaningful work experiences. Future leaders can begin building this capability by mentoring new employees, sharing expertise with colleagues, and helping others solve problems and navigate challenges. These experiences create a foundation for the coaching responsibilities that accompany formal leadership roles.

Why Generic Leadership Development Often Falls Short

Although many organizations recognize the importance of developing future leaders, development is often delivered through a one-size-fits-all approach. Employees are enrolled in the same workshops, assigned the same training curriculum, and expected to follow similar development paths regardless of their individual strengths and development needs.

To maximize impact, leadership development requires a more targeted approach. Different employees have different competency strengths, development opportunities, and readiness levels. As a result, the most effective development plans are personalized to the individual.

The challenge is determining which competencies each employee should focus on. Without objective data, organizations may invest development resources in areas that have little impact on future leadership success while overlooking more important development needs. Identifying those priorities requires a more systematic approach to assessing leadership capability.

How to Create Personalized Leadership Development Plans

Effective leadership development begins with understanding where employees are today. While the leadership competencies required for success may be similar across employees, development needs are often very different from one person to the next.

Assessment data from tools such as the LSP-R can help identify competency-level strengths and gaps, allowing development efforts to focus on the areas most likely to improve future leadership effectiveness

For employees identified as emerging leaders or high-potential talent, the LSP-R Focus Report helps translate assessment results into actionable development priorities. Rather than recommending the same training for every employee, development efforts can be targeted toward the specific competencies that will have the greatest impact on future leadership effectiveness.

For example, an employee who demonstrates strong interpersonal skills but lower strategic thinking may benefit from stretch assignments that expose them to broader business challenges. Another employee who struggles with communication may benefit from coaching, presentation opportunities, or feedback-focused development experiences.

This targeted approach helps ensure development resources are invested where they will have the greatest impact. It also provides employees with greater clarity about their growth priorities, making development efforts more focused and actionable.

1. Gartner. (2024). Top 5 priorities for HR leaders in 2024. https://www.gartner.com/en/human-resources/trends/top-priorities-for-hr-leaders ↩︎
2. Church, A. H., Rotolo, C. T., Ginther, N. M., & Levine, R. (2015). How are top companies assessing their high-potentials and senior executives? A talent management benchmark study. Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research, 67(3), 199–223. ↩︎
3. Groves, K. S. (2007). Integrating leadership development and succession planning best practices. Journal of Management Development, 26(3), 239–260. ↩︎
4. Development Dimensions International. (2023). Global leadership forecast 2023. https://www.ddiworld.com/global-leadership-forecast ↩︎
5. De Meuse, K. P. (2019). A meta-analysis of the relationship between learning agility and leader success. Journal of Organizational Psychology, 19(1), 25-34. ↩︎