What happens when a company identifies the hidden talent pool in their workforce? Powerful change.

Leaders across sectors and industries come to Challenge Factory for help with workforce problems that feel too big or too difficult to solve alone. Product, process, and equipment challenges feel like they have “right” answers. Culture and people challenges are messy. More often than not, the root of the issue is the same: organizations don’t know how to access or maximize the potential of their talent, especially their hidden talent pools.

Hidden talent pools are groups of employees, jobseekers, or other labour market participants who go unnoticed by employers and policymakers. Their valuable skills, qualifications, and growth opportunities are overlooked. Their potential is wasted, despite being the key to gaining a competitive advantage and building a sustainable workforce. Within the workplace, this leads to low employee engagement and high turnover. In the broader labour market, it leads to struggling jobseekers, underemployment, and labour shortages.

Examples of hidden talent pools include older workers and military Veterans, two groups—about whom myths, misperceptions, and stereotypes are rife—that Challenge Factory has been prioritizing since our founding. An essential step to solving culture and people challenges, producing better business outcomes, and advancing Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Indigeneity (EDII) is recognizing the hidden talent of individuals from diverse and underrepresented backgrounds.

In this behind-the-scenes interview with Challenge Factory’s President and Vice President, Lisa Taylor and Emree Siaroff, we explore what happens when a company identifies the hidden talent pool in their own workforce. Lisa and Emree open up about a range of topics that can help organizations build strong, sustainable work cultures, including the power of trust, community, and well-facilitated open dialogue, the possibilities for change when leaders choose to try something different, and the importance of career development to company loyalty, employee engagement, and retention.

Let’s set the scene. Who came to Challenge Factory for help and what type of program did we build for them?

EMREE This was a large North American company. They had identified a gender gap in their senior leadership team and were concerned about equipping women leaders to succeed in the company long-term. We’d worked with them before through our Trusted Advisor Leadership Counsel services and had built trust and rapport together over time.

LISA Once we understood the company’s needs, we developed an eight-month pilot program that included leadership development training and formal mentorship for a cohort of current and future women leaders. We led them through leadership workshops and sprints where they were introduced to specific tools, techniques, and approaches for creating a culture of trust and communication. Each program participant was also introduced to a female mentor from outside the company; the pair met monthly to discuss work, careers, leadership, and how these interact in their lives.

EMREE The goals of the program were to prepare participants for leadership roles, improve retention of women leaders, increase female mentorship within the company, and measure and evaluate the program for future expansion.

Why did having a solid talent pipeline of women leaders matter to this company?

LISA The company works in a traditionally male-dominated field, but they place high value on gender diversity and balance. While they currently do have women in senior C-suite leadership roles, as they were looking to plan for the upcoming generation of leaders who could take over those roles in the future, they noticed a weakness in the gender balance of who was being put forward. The company decided they wanted to actively address what could, if left unchecked, lead to a situation where there would no longer be any senior C-suite women leaders in the company.

What are some of the outcomes that came from this program?

EMREE Many of the program participants saw their responsibilities, roles, or job titles advance in ways that make them proud. It’s exciting to see them step forward and say, “I’m here. This is what I want to be a part of, this is work I want to do.” Not only did the women in the program track their own growth, but the company recognized they were ready to take on more too.

Another key outcome was successfully laying the foundation for a long-term women’s mentorship strategy within the company. At the centre of that success was the creation of a strong sense of community among the participants. They were open, supportive, and willing to share with one another—and they wanted to expand these relationships across the company. It wouldn’t have mattered how fantastic our workshops or the one-on-one mentoring were if these leaders didn’t see value in carrying forward the program’s underlying values of community, trust, and communication.

LISA Yes, the program received high marks from participants. They said it was worth their time. That’s a crucial indicator of success since workloads are high and time is scarce for so many leaders and the program required a significant time commitment.

What role does career development pay in this type of leadership and workforce planning?

LISA You can’t “do” career development “to” someone. The career is owned by the individual; at Challenge Factory, we often talk about career ownership with our clients and our own team. You can’t force leadership development on someone or make them take a certain career path. Some people think it will happen naturally, but usually it takes effort and intention from both the employee and employer.

Employers that have a strong understanding of career development recognize this partnership and make it a priority. The employer needs to support the employee on their career development journey so that organic discussions can take place over time, leading to work, growth, and opportunity that meet the needs of both parties. That’s how you foster stronger loyalty, stronger engagement, and longer careers within organizations.

EMREE Another side of career ownership is shown here too. In addition to working with this company before, I had a previous relationship with the company’s CHRO from my past career in corporate HR. As someone in their Legacy Career® right now, the development of this program is an example of how great opportunities can arise by building networks and relationships over the course of our lives and careers, and how we can know each other in all different ways and all different companies and capacities. Part of career ownership is understanding the importance of those networks and taking care of those relationships, whether by participating in a leadership development and mentorship program or by checking in with people over the years just to see how they’re doing.

Career ownership is one of the five drivers shaping the Future of Work. Is this the main driver that the program focused on?

EMREE Actually, the program focused on two drivers. In no particular order, the first is career ownership and employment relationships and the second is demographics and longevity. On the employees’ side, we explored how they can take ownership of their careers within the company, particularly through assessments of their own strengths, behavioural styles, personal motivators and competencies, and more. On the other side of this is the role that the employer has to play in recognizing and actively working to break down structural barriers that prevent individuals or groups within their workforce from growing and advancing.

LISA This work was a demographic-based program, so it focused heavily on demographics. So, we also explored the intersections between leadership, gender, and additional demographics like age, race, and other components of identity. Longevity was a key element because the program participants were all at different stages of their careers. Each woman was a leader, but not everyone had 20 years of leadership experience. Having space for discussion about the longevity of careers today was a new experience for many of the program participants.

Lisa, you mentioned earlier that this was a pilot program. Does that mean it will be run again or scaled up?

LISA Yes, an important goal of this work was to create a sustainable program model that the company can continue using after the initial pilot. While many consultants out there do everything they can to generate repeat or follow-on work with clients, this was all about building the company’s internal capacity so they no longer need us for the same work.

EMREE The sustainability of the program really shone through when its sponsors began looking company-wide again, identifying other hidden talent pools, and beginning to adapt the program so other staff groups and new cohorts could be engaged.

Last question. If you had to choose one takeaway from this program that leaders should know, what would it be?

LISA I’ll go first. This type of program has the capacity to create amazing ripple effects beyond its short-term duration and success. Newfound value in other hidden talent pools, beautiful opportunities to learn from one another, a more inclusive workplace for employees, and many more. All this change began with an intentional decision made by the company’s current leaders to try something different. To try something new. They wanted innovation to foster a stronger, more resilient, and sustainable culture—and they chose to make it happen. That will pay them huge dividends in the future.

EMREE How can I top that? (Laughing.) There is real power in well-facilitated open dialogue and taking intentional time to connect with others. In programs like these, there can be reluctance to get candid and share openly. But that’s when the magic happens. This is also when trust becomes incredibly important and means the difference between meaningful and token success. When teams come together through trust to advance not only their individual careers, but also the careers and opportunities of other current and future staff, you’ll know you have a work culture that can unlock its people’s full potential.

Interview edited for length and clarity.

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Learn more about Challenge Factory’s Trusted Advisor Leadership Counsel.