A recent, high-profile, hiring decision put German national Thomas Tuchel as manager of the English men’s football team. The Champions League-winning former Chelsea boss, was appointed by the FA on an 18-month contract, starting in January 2025. Tuchel is the third non-British permanent manager of the England team after Sven-Goran Eriksson and Fabio Capello.
The decision caused some controversy. Tuchel is appointed over the head of acting manager, Lee Carsley, who many hoped would make the step up. Carsley joined the England youth set up as a coach in 2015, progressing to managing the Under 21 squad and leading them to victory in the 2023 Euro championship. He didn’t, at this point, make the grade.
Why do organisations look outside their own ranks when making appointments? Isn’t it preferable to develop talent within the organisation and make internal promotions a priority? Why do successful and talented people so often have to move to a new company in order to further their career?
Buy in or bring on?
Perhaps leadership and HR don’t think they have the bench strength to make an internal promotion, or perhaps they feel it’s cheaper to hire in than to train up for the top ticket roles. Promoting from within requires the ability to choose and cultivate talent, to invest in employees, and the expertise to train and prepare employees to climb the career ladder.
The big problem is that all too often the business doesn’t know what it doesn’t know, let alone what will be needed down the line. It seems to me that despite investment in HR systems, few organisations know the bench strength or the potential in their talent pipeline. Sometimes there’s a need to bring in skills that are simply not on tap when talent is grown organically. It’s quicker to hire externally someone with proven experience when needed, than to identify an employee who may, or may not, develop in-house to become that person.
The case for the internal hire is self-evident. There is a huge advantage of having a candidate who understands the culture, the systems and the workforce, because they were promoted from within. You have more and better information about an internal hire than an external one and you can look at their past record and evaluate their performance in very real terms.
That said, new blood and fresh perspectives can kick-start a change initiative and revitalise a team but of times the expensively recruited star will shine much less brightly than they did for their previous employers. An HBR article from May 2004 looked at a study of over 1000 star stock analysts which revealed that rather than being stars they were comets, blazing successes for a while but quickly fading when they move companies.
Top performers who join new companies may well find that the transition is tougher than may have been anticipated. A newcomer must learn about the procedures, personalities, relationships, and culture of the organisation, may be handicapped by the attitudes of his new colleagues if they resent the incomer, using avoidance and gatekeeping information or refusing to cooperate.
Grow your own talent
Investing in employees means hiring people who are qualified and also capable of taking on more responsibility. It requires an organisation to hire for potential and that is very difficult to assess. If the organisation gets it right then they reap the huge advantage of having a candidate who understands the culture, the systems and the workforce, because they were promoted from within. You have more and better information about an internal hire than an external one and you can look at their past record and evaluate their performance in very real terms.
It’s good for morale and retention to develop and promote internally, plus the improved information both company and employee have about the relevant context is a serious advantage. It’s less risky and easier to find a good fit. Research shows that the more experience an employee can build the more fulfilled and likely to stay they are. This is not just about promotions and pay rises but a broad range of career opportunities so that employees can acquire cross-company experience and skills.
Talent is a competitive differentiator
An employee who believes their organisation prioritises, values, and rewards learning, is more likely to have high levels of engagement. Engagement drives retention and enhanced organisational performance. There are clear bottom line business benefits for organisations with effective employee career development strategies in place.
So, to pick up the football thread again, the offside of this debate is that in the current environment very often the best option for many employees is to seek development elsewhere. This is no bad thing, they broaden their experience, make new contacts, gain new perspectives. Whilst good for the employee and it’s not good for the employer who watches their investment go to work for a competitor, taking with them the secrets of success, inside knowledge and privileged information.
Returning to Tuchel versus Carsley. Will Tuchel be a star or a comet? I suspect Carsley will move into club management. Remember Brian Clough the best manager England never had!
