The Career Conversation Revolution: Redefining Internal Mobility for Today’s Workforce

This week, LHH took part in the 2024 SHRM Annual Conference and Expo in Chicago! While there, we hosted a Mini Talent Conversation Series at the HR Strategy and Innovation Theater. This series aimed to showcase our upcoming fall events and discuss the current ideas and challenges facing the global workforce of the future.

Our first session, held June 24th, was titled The Career Conversation Revolution: Redefining Internal Mobility for Today’s Workforce and focused on the importance of internal mobility as a solution for navigating turbulent times and retaining talent in organizations. We were joined by two esteemed LHH colleagues:

• Meredith Krupic - SVP, Area Director Career Transition & Mobility at LHH
• Stephanie Morris - Head of Sales, Leadership Development at LHH

During this mini conversation, the speakers highlighted findings from our recent report, The Great Potential - The Global Workforce of the Future. This research gathered responses from 30,000 employees across 23 different countries and provided insight into their concerns and desires regarding the present and future labor market.

One of the most notable findings that our speakers pointed out is that nearly half of job seekers (47%) are actively seeking opportunities outside their current organizations, while a mere 8% are looking toward internal platforms. This disparity highlights a major gap and potential area of improvement for organizations to engage their existing workforce more effectively. As Stephanie pointed out, “We have transitioned from the great resignation to global uncertainty.”

Instead of leaving their current positions, employees are opting to stay in a state of passive retention—hesitant to explore new opportunities beyond their current roles due to the uncertainty of the job market. On the other hand, they are standing by, hoping and waiting for their organizations to provide them with avenues for upskilling and internal growth. The concept of “quiet quitting” lends a hand to this idea—workers are not outright resigning, but without the right engagement and opportunities for professional development, they are tapering off their productivity levels as they await the perfect moment for their departure.

Internal mobility has become imperative for organizations to adjust to evolving market conditions and ensure their survival and competitiveness when maintaining talent. It enhances employee engagement, retention, and talent development, making it important for businesses to thrive in the face of increasing demand for better workplace systems.

“This passive talent pool is actually a great opportunity for organizations to start investing in their talent because if you do, your talent acquisition and your retention strategy will become your biggest differentiator. And that’s a great place for organizations to be today.” - Stephanie Morris

One key message was that organizations need to start investing in these internal structures now. During the session, both speakers agreed that employees need to own their own career paths, but managers have a crucial responsibility to empower their employees to assume ownership of their careers. As with any big initiative, this kind of training needs to start at the top. The organization must train its managers to be receptive to career mobility and engage their employees through consistent and compassionate career conversations. Conversations that address skills gaps, transferable skills, and willingness for mobility.

“The company must build a structure that helps define specific roles and responsibilities to ensure success. You have employees, managers, and the organization—three legs of the stool—without one, it doesn’t work. All three legs are critical: employees, from the perspective that they need to own their career. Managers because they need to enable their employees to have the right conversations and be willing to support them. And the organization needs to provide a framework that allows mobility to occur. Those three aspects are critical” - Stephanie Morris

It’s clear that employees are feeling the weight of uncertainty more than ever before—more than half of workers point to external factors (52%) and a “fear of the unknown” (51%) as holding them back in their careers. So, if organizations want to stay ahead of the curve and take advantage of this passive talent pool, they must enable their managers to imbue feelings of stability in an unstable environment. After all, managers are the face of the company for employees—so they will look to them for clarity and support during times of tension. Meredith points out, “Managers who are trained to identify and promote skills and growth is key.”

“From an employer perspective, this means that your talent strategies need to be rooted in three things: one, mobility. Mobility is key. Two, it gives workers the skills they need to do the jobs today and in the future. And third is growth. You need to give them opportunities for growth.” - Meredith Krupic

One audience member raised an important question: "How do you overcome the challenge of a manager ‘hoarding’ an employee because they are a valuable asset to the team?"

Both speakers emphasized that while it may feel beneficial in the short term, talent hoarding ultimately hinders organizational success. Employees are acutely aware of the fact that companies often hire externally when filling new positions instead of investing in the development of internal employees. In fact, 64% of employees believe that companies should prioritize upskilling internal staff before seeking external candidates—and they’re not wrong to think so. When managers hoard talent — with intent or not — it blocks employees from acquiring new skills, limiting the organization's future potential to stay competitive and responsive to market changes. This will result in a workforce that is less adaptable, less skilled, and potentially less engaged.

The LHH conversation series offers a valuable platform for professionals to connect, network, and learn about the latest developments in their respective industries. If you wish to attend in the future, watch for upcoming events in your area and explore the “Great Potential, Global Workforce of the Future” report for more insights into these trends.