The Business Case for Executive Assessment: Why Assessment in Challenging Times Can Enhance Productivity and Be a Talent “Game Changer”

The Business Case for Executive Assessment: Why Assessment in Challenging Times Can Enhance Productivity and Be a Talent “Game Changer” By Linda Sharkey, Ph.D. Paul Eccher, Ph.D. Background: The “war for talent” is an often heard mantra of today’s CEOs. This issue was identified as early at 1997 when McKinsey conducted War for Talent research. They cited that there would be an “imminent shortage of executives”. It seems as if this perspective has borne itself out. It is hard to pick up an article on Human Resources or Leadership Development without a discussion on finding, developing and retaining top talent. In addition to a dearth of executives, Russell Reynolds research indicates that “the demand for qualified workers in all industries is going to continue to outstrip supply for the foreseeable future”. (Russell Reynolds Series, 2008). Additionally, Joseph Bower cites in his research with 1,380 HR directors that 60% responded that their firms had no CEO success...