Management development
T
he need to develop managers
who can deliver results
in a globally competitive
marketplace has never been
more pressing. It is one of the
key drivers behind the quest
for excellence in international
management development
(IMD) in many global organisations.
But changes in the relationship between
employers and employees have made
the process of developing managers with
international mindsets more demanding.
The perception that jobs are no longer
for life means that individuals are now
increasingly focused on developing their
own “career capital” as they seek to improve
their position in the external job market.
Work-life balance is also becoming a
significant factor in career planning for
growing numbers of managers, male and
female alike.
Yet research for a new CIPD guide,
International Management Development
Development,
reveals that despite these changes, most
BY MICHAEL DICKMANN, HILARY HARRIS AND FRANCES WILSON
A WING
AND A
PRAYER
WWW.PEOPLEMANAGEMENT.CO.UK
ALEX GREEN
Most global organisations are still prepared to invest
their time and money in international management
development – even though high-flying employees
may use it to enhance their own ‘career capital’
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39
Management development
CASE STUDY: PRICEWATERHOUSECOOPERS
PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) intends to focus on performance, innovation and change and
become less dependent on a culture of rules, hierarchy and tradition, says Moira Elms, the
firm’s head of human capital in the UK.
She argues that, following the corporate scandals and regulatory changes of recent years,
internationally integrated management development has significantly increased in importance.
This is one of the reasons why PwC set up a leadership development initiative called Genesis
Park in 2001. Based in Washington DC and aimed at high-potential staff from across the globe
with two to nine years of work experience, this is expected to help grow future leaders,
contribute to the development of PwC’s business strategy, drive cultural change and help the
firm retain its top performers.
Around 100 people from more than 20 countries, all selected by their managers on the basis
of their performance and potential, have taken part in the initiative so far. Between eight and
16 individuals at a time go through the five-month programme. Scheduling ensures that intakes
overlap with each other so that participants can share their experiences and act as coaches to
the next batch.
Projects that are either defined by the current group or handed on from an earlier intake
form an important element of the programme. These projects revolve around live business
issues sponsored by country operations or international functions, such as the global tax
practice. Project teams have, for example, looked at offshoring options for key services and
the future of PwC’s advisory services.
There is also a heavy emphasis on team development and individual growth. Three
full-time coaches and educators help to move the focus towards the development of ideas
and the construction of business cases. They also initiate a small number of strategic teambased projects.
global organisations still regard IMD as
a vital way of making sure they have the
right people available to step into top
jobs. Many also use it to enhance their
appeal as employers in a competitive
recruitment market.
While IMD remains a priority, the
methods used to develop global managers
have changed radically from the days when
organisations controlled the process with
complex, long-term succession planning
and centrally dictated career plans. The
aims of development programmes have
also changed. The CIPD research, which
is based on eight case studies, shows that
organisations are increasingly linking IMD
to their strategic needs.
One example is the United Nations
System, which will shortly be launching a
new development programme for senior
managers. The UN System consists of
around 30 independent or semi-independent
bodies, including the World Health
Organization, Unicef and the UN itself.
While these organisations are expected to
work closely together, they do not currently
have a common management culture to
help them do so. But the UN’s Millennium
Declaration, with its ambitious goals of
halving extreme poverty, halting the spread
of HIV/Aids and providing universal primary
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12 JANUARY 2006
❛❛
The methods
used to develop
global managers
have changed
from when
organisations
controlled the
process with
complex, longterm succession
planning
❜❜
education by 2015, is providing a
powerful catalyst for change.
Senior managers in the UN
System now need to be creative,
versatile, multi-skilled and able to
operate in a complex multicultural
environment. They must also
have what it takes to work
collaboratively within and
across organisations,
which in many cases
are decentralising and
delegating authority
downwards.
With these aims in
mind, the UN System
Chief Executive’s Board for
Coordination (CEB) has
set up what is known as
the Senior Management
Network to deliver
leadership and management
development. Around 2,400
senior managers are expected to join the
network. “We hope that this will achieve
improved management capacity across the
whole family of UN organisations, as well
as greater collaboration among them,” says
Mary Jane Peters, who, as director of the
CEB’s secretariat in Geneva, is responsible
for management policy.
The network will provide a set of core
competencies such as leading change
effectively, getting the best out of employees
and building strong partnerships. The
idea is to support the development of a
common management culture across the
whole UN System. In addition, generic
global leadership competencies will help the
organisations involved to select and develop
high-potential managers.
Peters points out that few current
leadership programmes are geared to the
international not-for-profit sector, let alone
to the unique governance structures of the
UN. “We need something quite distinct, so
we have gone to tender for some leading
business schools to design a leadership
programme for people who are largely in
director-level positions,” she says.
This programme will be based on the
network’s core competencies and is due to be
rolled out later this year.
Of course, IMD is not only about sending
people to business school. Most global
organisations view international mobility
as a critical component of their IMD
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programmes. Traditionally, high-flyers
would go on a two- to three-year posting
away from their home country. Now,
rotational assignments tend to be shorter
and may involve working in more than
one country.
Where organisations use international
assignments as part of their IMD, they need
to distinguish between short-term local
and global business needs on the one hand,
and the long-term development needs of
their future leaders on the other. One global
employer that recognises the importance
of making this distinction and of planning
ahead is HSBC.
Most opportunities for international
secondments at the banking group are
identified as part of a business succession
planning process. Each business within
HSBC also draws up an annual plan
estimating both the demand for secondees
and the supply of talented executives who will
benefit from an international development
posting during the following year.
Individual HSBC businesses in all
countries are expected to consider how
they can strengthen the diversity of their
staff at all levels. This means ensuring that,
wherever possible, the chief executive or his
or her main direct report is a local manager.
That local manager in turn needs to have
had some international experience. Similarly,
members of the “global talent pool”, a group
of executives who are being groomed for the
most senior jobs in the group, are expected
to have at least one international job as part
of their career development.
If organisations do not handle all stages
of an international assignment effectively,
there is a strong possibility that they will
lose the talent they are trying to develop
and retain. So it is important that they plan
for repatriation – something that is a priority
at HSBC.
The bank tries to make sure that the skills
and experience of returning employees are
exploited and that suitable roles are found
for them. Measures designed to achieve
these objectives include establishing areas
for development during the secondment,
providing extra days’ leave for the employee
to visit the home office, and identifying two
or three roles that might be suitable and
available on the individual’s return.
Milton Ives, senior manager, international
secondments at HSBC Holdings, says:
“Planning for the return of a secondee starts
WWW.PEOPLEMANAGEMENT.CO.UK
❛❛
Most global
companies view
international
mobility as
a critical
component of
programmes
❜❜
at the outset and revolves around everything
we do. Before departure, a secondee and
their home business sponsor will agree the
key capabilities they need to focus on during
the assignment, taking into account their
longer-term career goals.”
Policies and practices aligned to the bank’s
talent management strategy are central to
the success of the international secondment
programme, he adds.
Looking ahead, it is clear that global
organisations will face new challenges in
developing their future leaders. There is a
possibility that global economic and political
contexts will become more unpredictable,
which will make detailed development and
succession planning difficult. So
too will the growing willingness
of individuals to move between
companies to further their
careers. If organisations are
to meet these challenges,
they need to understand
the expectations of
their most highly
talented individuals,
wherever they
may be located in
the world. 
i Further info
Michael Dickmann is director of the Centre for
Research into the Management of Expatriation,
Hilary Harris is executive development consultant at
Cranfield Business School and Frances Wilson is
international manager at the CIPD.
The new CIPD guide, International Management
Development, uses case studies to investigate the issues
Development
multinational organisations are facing, including the rising
skills of low-cost workforces in Asia, the psychological
contract and work-life balance. It can be downloaded
from the CIPD website ›› www.cipd.co.uk/guides
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