Increasing internal career progression: a collaborative HR strategy

That said, there is a rich dividend for those businesses that succeed. For this roundtable, therefore, we were delighted to welcome Lindsay Hickey, Head of Talent & Careers, and Puja Power, Head of Talent Acquisition at BSI. Together, they explained how they’ve worked together successfully to increase internal career progression – and change perceptions of career opportunities across BSI.

Lindsay and Puja shared many insights, including:

• Definitions of internal career progression, why it is important, and the challenges they faced.
• The BSI ‘Career Deal’ initiative, including its communications, resources and events.
• How they’ve created an urgency for change within their organisation.

Internal career progression: What it is and why it is important.

BSI defines internal career progression as …

‘The movement of employees within an organisation, either through lateral moves, promotions, or transfers to different roles, departments or locations.’

This definition – and the mobility required to deliver it – was important for BSI, because it needed to find a way to build a resilient and motivated workforce to meet organisational goals. And it was also a way to reduce recruitment and training costs and keep critical knowledge and skills in the business.

Internal research highlighted an urgent need for improvement in career progression. An October 2023 engagement survey revealed that only 60% of colleagues believed there were good career opportunities available to them. Some participants expressed feeling overlooked for promotions and noted a lack of transparency around internal opportunities. These insights, combined with the high cost of replacing talent, underscored the importance of addressing internal career progression.

Moreover, internal hires typically adapt more quickly, as they already understand the company’s culture and processes, leading to faster transitions and higher productivity. Currently, the business fills approximately 22% of open roles with internal hires. However, research indicates that achieving at least 30% would align with best practice.

BSI’s commitment to colleagues on careers

BSI decided it needed an enterprise-wide mindset around career progression, with leaders aligned on the need to share and keep talent on board. It therefore committed to helping all colleagues, by making learning part of their everyday, engaging in meaningful career conversations at all levels, and empowering them to shape their own progress.

The BSI’s Career Development Cycle (known as its ‘Career Deal’) was the resulting commitment to colleagues’ development, progression, and growth within the organisation. It featured a portfolio of resources to support colleagues, along with innovations developed in partnership with The Career Innovation Company, including a Careers Week and a Be Bold open programme.

One of the BSI Careers Week modules, ‘Selling Your Best Self’ promoted the benefits of internal applications and stronger collaboration between colleagues and the talent acquisition team.

The Be Bold programme offered colleagues a coaching-style experience to help them take charge of their careers with confidence. The impact was clear:

• The attrition rate among Be Bold participants was less than half that of the wider BSI population.
• Participants were twice as likely to secure an internal move or promotion.

Internal project team

Talent Acquisition and People Development came together to launch Phase 1 of the internal career progress project team. This phase included three key activities:

• The introduction of simple resources, such as resource guides, practical tips, and helpful links.
• A new Viva Engage Channel to give new career options visibility, celebrate success and share stories.
• An internal Career progression central inbox to field all related question from internal colleagues.

These resources were published on an internal SharePoint site, which is a subpage of the Careers Hub.

Spreading the word

As with all projects of this sort, finding advocates who show exemplary behaviours really helps to shift the culture. The HR team were encouraged to advocate through:

• Self-Use. This meant putting your own ‘oxygen mask’ on first – and exploring the resources to support one’s own personal career aspirations.
• Leading by example. This was all about contributing by posting about positive behaviours and seeking opportunities to share resources with others.
• Promoting. Liking, sharing and commenting on channels to create visibility for others and leveraging resources to support the broader BSI team.

Finally, BSI sought to link career progression directly to its corporate story. This it did with a six-chapter story explaining where the business was, where it wanted to go, what it would take to be ‘future-ready’, and how all colleagues could help to achieve this, as they develop their own careers.

Our View

BSI provides a great example of an organisation building a highly effective strategy for internal career progression. All organisations should want this, though many find it hard to deliver. At The Career Innovation Company, we spend a lot of time with our clients shifting manager mindsets toward more talent sharing and support for internal career mobility. It’s a two-step process:

1. Understanding where managers may resist internal mobility—and why.
2. Pulling key change levers, including:

• • Communicating a compelling business rationale.
  • Aligning key people management processes.
  • Providing resources, skills training and peer support.
  • Encouraging senior leader advocacy and role modelling.

The approach that’s right for any organisation is going to be tailored to its own needs. Yet the standards set by BSI has features that all can learn from. A collaborative HR strategy, like the one BSI implemented, is not just achievable – it’s a growing necessity for any organisation serious about making the most of its talent.