I have a question for you, what are you doing to develop your bench? Or, in more corporate terms, what are you doing to develop your talent pipeline?
You see, a well-developed pipeline, or bench, gives leaders the ability to adapt and pivot to the changes, challenges, and opportunities in the marketplace.
As on any sports team, coaches need to not only focus on the main players but developing those on the bench if they need to suddenly jump onto the field.
I recently watched a high school football team in a playoff game going into their half-time at 20-3. Even though they were so far ahead, the team had taken some pretty serious knocks. Coming back out for the third quarter was nearly a new team…the bench had been activated due to many injuries.
Sadly, the bench was unable to perform well enough to win, even with a 17 point lead at the half. Their lack of development cost them the game and opportunity to go onto the championships.
As in the corporate world, you need to think about your team and where their talents lie. How can you develop them? Your business should not be sidelined because of the lack of depth on your “bench.”
So, I’ll ask again…what are you doing to develop your talent pipeline?
