This document summarizes a study that explored differences in leadership competencies observed at different leader levels. It found that competency requirements change depending on the leader's level in the organization. For example, strategic and business competencies are more important for higher levels like CEOs, while relationship management competencies are important across levels. Understanding these differences can help organizations select, develop, and provide feedback to leaders appropriately based on their level.

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Mark Do
July 2017
Bench Strength of the
Leadership Pipeline
Exploring multi-rater competencies that emerge
at different leader levels

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BACKGROUND

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Introduction
▪ Responsibilities of leaders differ vastly depending on their level
▪ In addition to “hard” metrics, success is determined and measured via leadership
competencies exhibited
▪ These leadership competencies are vital for understanding current performance but can
also reveal how the leader will perform in future/more senior positions
▪ This study explores the differences in observed leadership competencies between
different leader levels.

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Leader Levels
▪ Leadership phenomena manifest differently at distinct levels
(Zaccaro, 2001; McCall & Lombardo, 1983)
▪ Leadership development follows a roadmap
▪ Most companies design and implement leadership development in terms of competencies
(Dai et al., 2010)
▪ Essential to clearly define critical leadership competencies at different leader levels
(Pernick, 2001; Snipes, 2006)

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Changing Competency Requirements
▪ Leadership competency requirements continue to change
▪ Changes impact organisational priorities AND changes in the importance of certain
leadership competencies
▪ E.g., 9/11 (incidence and pervasiveness of PTSD and depression)
(Sparks & Gentry, 2008)
▪ Modern executives…work with direct reports in group settings; focus more on giving
information rather than performing administrative duties (compared with 30 years ago)
(Tengblad, 2006)

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Benefits of
Understanding
Differences Between
Levels
Leaders are better able to:
▪ Prepare leaders for training, job transitions
and career-development opportunities
▪ Communicate expectations at different levels
▪ Provide relevant feedback to direct reports
▪ Select the best people for each leader level
▪ Coordinate work effectively
(Kraut et al., 1989)

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What We Know So Far: Literature Review
▪ More senior leadership positions generally require higher levels of all competencies
▪ Competency profiles are increasingly different as one moves up levels
▪ Communication and Cognitive competencies needed across all leadership levels
▪ Need for Business and Strategic competencies increases as level increases
▪ Importance of self-awareness, leading others and decisiveness increases; networking,
relationships and learning new technical skills/knowledge decreases as one moves up
▪ Skill vs Importance – highly correlated, so not a strong need to differentiate

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Limitations of Past Research
▪ The few studies available looked at single organisations in specific sectors and countries
 low generalisability
▪ Narrow examination of leadership competencies
(e.g., Mumford et al., 2007)
▪ Where a broad range of competencies were studied (67), no specifics were reported –
only that a difference exists between levels
(Dai et al., 2010)

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PRESENT STUDY

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Research Objective
▪ To examine leadership competency differences and benchmarks across
various leader levels:
▪ Board Member
▪ CEO/Executive Board Member
▪ Divisional Leader
▪ General Manager/VP
▪ Manager/Supervisor
▪ Manager (no direct reports)
- e.g., technical managers, process managers, product managers etc.

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Method
Sample
▪ 1,919 leaders/ratees and
20,701 raters
▪ 10-11 raters per leader
Analyses
▪ One-way ANOVA’s to
compare means across 6
Leader Levels
▪ Pairwise comparisons for
further analysis of mean
differences between groups

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Results

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Self-Management
▪ Manager (NDR) scored highest
across all leader levels
▪ CEO/EBM and
Manager/Supervisor scored
higher than Divisional Leader
and GM

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Relationship Management
▪ Manager (NDR) scored higher
than GM and
Manager/Supervisor
▪ Communication: CEO/EBM
scored higher than GM and
Manager/Supervisor
▪ People Skills/Team Player:
Manager (NDR) scored higher
than most leader levels
▪ Customer: CEO/EBM scored
higher than most leader levels

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Working in the Business
▪ CEO/EBM scored higher than
most leader levels
▪ Capability: Manager/Supervisor
typically scored the lowest
▪ Efficiency: Manager (NDR)
scored higher than most leader
levels
▪ Results: Manager (NDR) scored
higher than GM and
Manager/Supervisor
▪ Engaging: CEO/EBM scored the
highest; Manager (NDR) scored
lower than all leader levels,
followed by Manager/Supervisor

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Working on the Business
▪ CEO/EBM scored higher than
Manager/Supervisor and
Manager (NDR)
▪ Manager (NDR) scored the
lowest across all leader levels
▪ Accountability: Manager (NDR)
scored the lower than all leader
levels
▪ Motivation: N.S.
▪ Strategy/Innovation: CEO scored
higher than most leader levels,
followed by Divisional Leader
and GM

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IMPLICATIONS

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Practical Implications
▪ Ability to clearly define critical leadership competencies and benchmarks in a leadership
pipeline/succession system
▪ Select the right people for leadership roles
▪ Coordinate work effectively, communicate expectations, and facilitate training and career
development
▪ In leadership development programs, target particular competencies required at each level
▪ Customise development experiences to help leaders transition between levels

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Conclusion
The findings help organisations to assess and identify
high potential leaders accurately, start development
early based on future role requirements, and assign the
right experiences to develop the right competencies at
the right time.

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QUESTIONS