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Internal mobility sounds great in theory. But in practice, it’s often hard. Employees can struggle to find internal opportunities. Hiring managers may be reluctant to let their best talent go. And HR may not have all the systems in place to make transitions with ease. 

Despite being complicated, internal mobility can be a key to a successful talent strategy. “At the largest, highest level, it’s really about: How are you empowering and facilitating movement within your organization?” Teuila Hanson, chief people officer at LinkedIn, told a breakout session at Talent Connect 2022.

Amid a slowdown in hiring, internal mobility is also more important than ever: Companies still have to fill roles and address quickly changing business needs. 

That’s where internal mobility can play a crucial role. When you have jobs you’re trying to fill, where better to look than in your own experienced ranks? Internal mobility offers huge payoffs too, including increased retention, engagement, and agility and reduced cost and time of hiring. LinkedIn data shows that employees stay 41% longer at companies that have a lot of internal hiring versus those that don’t.

To crack the internal mobility code, let’s take a closer look at what Teuila had to say. 

1. Bring everyone to the table

In the past, Teuila said, internal mobility involved sitting down and creating job profiles for every role and then bringing in HR business partners, talent acquisition, and learning and development, often one at a time. Now, job profiles and skills change so rapidly that by the time you’ve got a plan in place, roles might be obsolete.

“You’re constantly trying to skate to the hockey puck,” Teuila explained.

The only way to make internal mobility happen quickly enough, she argued, is to bring everyone to the table at the same time. This should include the DEI team, so you can create clear pathways for employees from underrepresented groups. Teuila said that companies also need a better grasp of their employees’ skills, citing herself as an example. Though she currently works as the chief people officer, she’s also an attorney with labor negotiation and litigation skills. 

“You kind of need everybody at the table, working on this,” she told the breakout session, “to get to a place where you can sustain profiles and keep them updated.” 

2. Use metrics to convince resistant managers 

LinkedIn research has shown that the top barrier to internal recruiting is managers who are reluctant to let go of their best performers. Teuila suggested asking managers whether they’d rather have an employee thrive in the organization or leave for another org. 

“When you step back and think about all the goodness the organization can gain from having robust career paths,” she explained, “it’s a no-brainer.”

Metrics can also be persuasive. LinkedIn, for example, looks at the transformation rate of its managers, measuring how much talent they’ve exported to the rest of the company. “We celebrate it when we’re seeing high transformation rates,” Teuila said, “and that certain functions are talent exporters.” 

Because managers are dealing with a lot of stress and are at risk of burnout, they’ll most likely need support to get internal mobility right. Teuila said: “I’m constantly thinking about, do they have the right tools? Do they have the resources they need?” Yes, managers can help companies by being “career navigators.” But organizations also need to “be really clear about what’s going to come off managers’ plates,” Teuila said, if they’re going to succeed. 

3. Use internal mobility to fuel your DEI efforts 

When she worked in DEI at several other companies, Teuila found that the No. 1 reason organizations weren’t able to retain diverse talent “was lack of career opportunities and advancement.” 

To better understand what was happening, she looked more closely at employee surveys and exit data and found an “acute” problem of employees from underrepresented groups not having the information they needed. They didn’t have the networks. They didn’t know what jobs were available. And they didn’t always know how to have a conversation with their managers to say, “Hey, I think I’m ready for my next role. Can you help me out?” 

If companies want to keep a diverse workforce, Teuila suggested, they need to “really double down” on letting employees know there are jobs for them in the organization. They also need to keep employees engaged and help them increase their skills and readiness for future roles. 

Companies can also work with their employee resource groups (ERGs) to get their perspectives on which skills and career pathways are of greatest value. “And make sure that anything you design takes into account all of your employees,” Teuila said. “If you design for your underrepresented employees, where this issue is most acute, it will lift all boats.” 

4. Start small and focus on one group of roles

One of the biggest mistakes companies make when tackling internal mobility, Teuila said, “is trying to do it all.” It’s much more effective, she suggested, to zero in on one group of roles where internal mobility can make the biggest impact. 

In a previous organization where she worked, she explained, the company tried to tackle company-wide internal mobility before they decided to focus almost entirely on technology roles. They chose technology because the roles changed quickly, were in the greatest demand, and were among the most difficult to fill. After succeeding in this one area of the company, they were then able to apply their knowledge on a larger scale. 

“Get laser-focused on one particular job family where you can make a difference,” Teuila added, “and start there.” 

5. Bring the compensation team in early and focus on skills rather than roles

Teuila also suggested bringing the compensation team into the conversation as early as possible and aligning any work you’re doing with salary surveys. “What you don’t want to happen,” she told the audience, “is 12 months in, you have created descriptions for your roles that don’t match the market.” You also don’t want great talent leaving the company because they received a more generous offer elsewhere. 

One way to stay competitive is to focus on pricing skills rather than roles. Track over time which skills are hot — and which are not — and think about compensation from a skills, rather than roles, point of view. “More and more companies are doubling down on skills,” she said. “They understand where the hockey puck is moving with the salary surveys, and they’re trying to get there before anybody else.” 

Final thoughts: Companies that are getting it right

Teuila pointed to several companies that excel at internal mobility, including Nordstrom, UPS, and AT&T, and told the story of a former UPS executive who started as a package handler and learned to drive a truck before ascending to various rotations in leadership. Teuila said that while every company has its own approach to internal mobility, the ideas that lead to success are pretty much the same. 

“It’s about making sure that you’re building strong talent, building future leaders, and creating higher levels of engagement and energy,” Teuila said, “so good talent stays within your organization.”

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