How Professional Coaching Can Support Career Mobility

Talent drain is a matter of concern because it is an occurring reality that worries human resource specialists and managers alike. Many factors parent weak high potential employees, including autonomy, few responsibilities, and lack of development prospects – all of which prompt young skilled talents to resign from companies.

Have you ever thought about it? That internal career mobility could be the right solution to tackle external mobility.

Professional mobility comprises three fundamental types: internal, external, and geographic mobility. So, rather than disregarding professional mobility, it can be beneficial if supported through professional coaching.

What is Professional Mobility?

Professional mobility is an approach that enables an employee to climb the corporate ladder to shift to another role. It could be within the same organization or in another firm. Upward professional mobility continues to gain momentum, thanks to the rapid digital transformation and the incoming new generation of professionals. However, according to a French report by Studyrama, one in two workers would be impacted by professional retraining. In a separate study conducted in 2016, 26% of employees have witnessed professional transition (based on information sourced from Observatory of Professional Trajectories). This shows how crucial professional mobility is in professional career development and one of the essential human resources management policies.

Types of Professional Mobility

There are three types of professional mobility: geographical mobility, internal mobility, and external mobility.

External Mobility

External career is also the external mobility synonym, this type of mobility involves moving employees into and out of a company. It is also described as the rate of change in the company’s employees. It determines how the old employees leave the company and new ones join the firm. There are two types of external mobility: accessions and separations.

Internal Mobility

This involves the shifting of employees from one role to another within the company. Forbes and Harvard Business Review agree that internal mobility is instrumental toward company success. And while talent acquisition from outside the company is crucial for improving the company, most organizations fail to see the most promising talent. As a result, talent remains untapped. The failure to unlock employees’ full potential may prompt them to want to move to another company and push them to find employment somewhere else.

Geographical Mobility

Geographical labor means the ability to measure the strength and ability of employees to relocate to find better or new employment. Several factors determine geographical labor mobility, such as transportation options, policies, and standards of living. In 2019, a study found that 79% of workers planned to change jobs. Among the latter, 41% favored external mobility. In other words, 41% preferred to change companies, 40% without opinion, and 19% preferred internal mobility. However, an internal mobility project has numerous advantages.

How Internal Mobility Policy Can Benefit a Company?

Statistics show France is among the most affected nations worldwide by brain drain. Currently, the country’s negative balance stands at 130,000.

This alarming figure has affected the less educated, amateur talented, individuals with Bac +3 – Bac+8 level, and women.

Five crucial factors seem instrumental in fighting against turnover :

• Talent Development.
• Professional development.
• The right talent management strategy.
• Attractive wages and salaries.
• Excellent quality of life at work.

The success of employee career mobility programs directly depends on continuous innovative training in a corporate university, ensuring talent retention within the walls of internal skills management policy.

Further, inhouse blended training boost the organization’s performance drastically and plays a crucial role in overall employer branding strategy. Employees become loyal and more open-minded in their work. Consequently, the company avoids onboarding mistakes or the duration it takes for new joiners to embrace the corporate culture.

Also, mobile learning for the sake of mobility ensures confidence in employees. This tells the employees that the manager and leader believes in them, and that’s why they are receiving the corporate training.

This level of initiative from the management part encourages employee development.

Last but not least, internal mobility is a decisive pull factor. It is an ingredient in the employer brand and hence draws in proficient skills.

The Benefits of Internal Mobility to Employees

There are numerous benefits of internal professional development. For one, the employee understands the company well, its organization, and the work environment. Therefore, there is less time for adaptation, as is the stress specific to adopting a new structure.

Also, colleagues remain consistent. If there is positive energy at work with solid team cohesion, it is an excellent benefit for those who continue to work with others who have become friends.

Moreover, the benefits associated with seniority are sustained (such as bonuses, leave, and indemnities). The problem with external mobility is that employees would be compelled to start from scratch in another organization. Lastly, there is no duration for trial when shifting positions. Considerable security.

Coaching to Support Mobility

When it comes to internal mobility, career mobility coaching helps professional transition to inaugurate seamlessly. The coach, through discussion sessions, leverages various disc coaching techniques to train and improve the interpersonal technique of the coachee. In addition, it considers the profile of the student or rather candidate, more so if they are high potential individuals.

We will use an example to understand this concept well:

Patrick works for company X. Recently, he was promoted to an internal management role, which involved new obligations, including emotional intelligence and keen leadership.

To make the transition smooth for the role, the company provided personal support through a certified professional coach. Conducted in-person or virtually, developing talent allows for a seamless, hassle-free transition.

The Benefits of Coaching in Supporting Professional Mobility

• It gives meaning to professional life.
• Understand changes in objectives in the organization.
• Encourage motivation at work
• Develop the soft skills needed for a new role.
• Manage stress and initiate change.

CoachHub supports and encourages professional development through a seamless and effective coaching experience offered in a fully-fledged digitized way. We are willing to work together with you to promote professional career development.