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The Discovery Approach
What is the Discovery Approach?
The Discovery Approach is an organizational intervention designed to facilitate and accelerate change behaviourally, attitudinally and cognitively. It is focused on that part of an organization holding leadership responsibility or future leadership talent.
The Approach consists of a series of events, designed to identify future success criteria and generate appropriate behaviours for senior people to succeed, either in new roles or following organisational transformation. The underlying principle behind the approach is that behaviour demonstrated and shaped in these events will enable the organization and individuals to achieve the future desired state more rapidly.
In general terms, the Discovery Approach can be used in different ways, to meet one or more organisational needs:
- Accelerate Change. The role of leaders in organizational change is central. The ability to articulate the new direction and set it into its strategic context is a significant factor in achieving the shift. So too is the ability of senior people to role model the new behaviours and live the values. The Discovery Approach enables the translation of these abilities into the way senior people work, facilitating and accelerating change.
- Drive for Talent. Growing talent and recognising potential are key business activities associated with success. The Discovery Approach enables these activities to be undertaken with rigour and impact. It also serves as a process of ‘recognition’ giving the people for the future a motivational boost.
- Succession Planning. Shaping Personal Development Plans (PDP) for senior people is often a problem. Different individuals require alternative paths to support their growth, especially if they are being groomed for particular positions within the business. The Discovery Approach allows PDPs to be created, based on evidence, and with the individuals’ involvement, that will deliver the desired results.
- Career Management. The key benefits of this approach to the organisation include its fairness, objectivity and transparency. As well as ensuring that the ‘right’ people are promoted, the organisation also receives information about all individuals’ strengths and development needs. This can feed into the organisation’s training and succession planning initiatives. From the individual’s perspective, they get a fair and accurate appraisal of their abilities, as well as more focused development suggestions, regardless of whether they are promoted or not.
- Senior Person Development. The benefit for the organisation is that, rather than providing ‘sheep dip’ training for all, the organisation is better able to identify different learner populations and their specific needs. As a result, high potential and/or high performance individuals receive the appropriate coaching, for example, whilst people with greater development needs are given more structured and long-term training and support. The individuals involved get specific, criterion-based feedback on their strengths and development needs, from which more informed choices about training and development can be made.
Key Components of the Discovery Approach
The Discovery Approach is Organization Specific
A multitude of off-the-shelf assessment exercises are available which can sometimes be valuable. However, our experience, backed up by research from leading business schools, tells us that the closer the method of assessment is to the role or behaviour against which the individual is being assessed, the more likely it is to accurately predict performance in the actual role or in their work behaviour. Tailored events - and simulations - designed with the particular industry and role in mind, tend to be a more productive investment in the long run.
The First Steps to Designing the Discovery Approach
1. Setting the criteria. Before the event is run, success criteria (or competencies) are identified, against which the participants will be assessed. A common error is that organisations often focus solely on historic rather than future related criteria.
2. Replication. Appropriate situations or elements of the role are identified for replication in the events. Each success criteria identified in ‘Stage 1’ will to be evaluated at least twice for each individual during the process.
3. Simulation design. To make the assessment as ‘real’ as possible, simulations are based on real or likely events. Criteria based assessment forms and supporting material are developed.
4. Training the observers. Observers from within the organisation are often used, as they can have a clear view of what is needed for the organisation. However, they need to understand the objectivity of the Approach and therefore need to be carefully prepared for the task. External observers can also be used to add an extra degree of objectivity and to manage the process on the day. In our experience, a blend of internal and external observers, with the whole process stage-managed by an external co-ordinator, produces the best results.
Some Advantages of the Discovery Approach
The Discovery Approach is:
- More objective than other methods of individual evaluation. With several observers and specific criteria, there is less chance of ‘observer bias’.
- Multidimensional. Several exercises measuring the same criterion provide participants with more opportunity to demonstrate true potential.
- Flexible. Once a good process exists, it can be modified relatively easily to fulfil different aims as the organisation develops over time.
- Predictive, rather than historical. The Approach is designed to identify potential rather than the current level of attainment.
- Valuable. The information gathered can be used to assist a variety of human resource functions, such as succession planning, training and development and performance management.
- Highly motivating to participants – irrespective or whether or not their career is immediately advanced. The experience of a well-designed Discover Approach is challenging and very involving, with the result that participants leave feeling a real sense of achievement and satisfaction at having taken part in an engaging and revealing process.