This article discusses the difficulty of hiring individual contributors to take on leadership roles. Individual contributors are those in a team whose primary responsibility is to produce work and do not oversee other members. It notes that an individual contributor may come with plenty of experience, but without having managed or led a team, have little idea of what it truly takes to be a successful leader. Companies looking to hire from within should create development programs and assess candidates for "learnability"—the ability to acquire new skills and knowledge. Furthermore, businesses should hire with potential in mind and consider the impact the new leader will have on the workplace culture. Finally, it is important to provide the chosen candidate with meaningful onboarding and ongoing support.
