How to Diagnose Leadership Gaps Before Investing in Any Development Program

Executive Summary
For Directors of L&D, Heads of Talent and OD Leads in multinational firms, diagnosing leadership gaps before investing in development programmes is critical. This article outlines how to identify and measure those gaps, through signs, data-analysis and mapping, so you can allocate resources strategically and avoid one-size-fits-all leadership development that fails to move the needle.

How to Diagnose Leadership Gaps Before Investing in Any Development Program

As directors of learning and development, talent heads and organizational development leads in multinational companies, you know that investing in leadership programmes is costly, and only pays off if it addresses the right gaps. This article shows how to identify and measure your leadership gaps before committing to coaching or training.

Why Leadership Gap Analysis Matters Before You Invest

Many organisations move straight to designing leadership training or coaching without first understanding where leaders currently are, where they need to be, and the size of the gap. Research from the Center for Creative Leadership (CCL) shows that in many cases leaders’ existing competencies are insufficient to meet future demands. (ccl.org)

Why this matters:

• Development programmes are costly, both in direct investment and in the “opportunity cost” of leader time.
• Without a properly diagnosed gap, you risk deploying a programme that doesn’t address the right competencies, reducing ROI.
• A gap-analysis creates clear, measurable objectives, aligning investment with business strategy (not just “we need more leadership”).
• It signals credibility to stakeholders (C-suite, HR, business units) that you have a systematic rationale rather than anecdotal justification.

In short: you will optimise your leadership development spend, target the highest-impact areas, and build a stronger business case before you invest.

Common Signs of Leadership Gaps (turnover, engagement, decision bottlenecks)

Before diving into formal measurement, look for leading indicators that suggest a leadership gap. These signs often appear, even if the underlying competency deficiency has not yet been quantified.

Key indicators include:

• Elevated turnover rates of high-potential leaders or key team members.
• Engagement scores flatlining or slipping. Weak leadership correlates strongly with disengaged teams (Harvard Business Review).
• Decision bottlenecks or slow execution caused by lack of delegation or strategic agility.
• Succession pipeline weak or non-existent.
• Innovation or change initiatives under-perform.

Checklist – signs to look for:

• ☑ High turnover among teams led by first-time or middle-tier leaders
• ☑ Business initiatives delayed because of leadership or decision-making issues
• ☑ Engagement scores dip in units overseen by leaders rated as “solid”
• ☑ Succession tables show few credible candidates for key roles
• ☑ Learning & development spend is high but measurable business impact is low

Checklist – mitigate confirmation bias:

• ☑ Rank across business units to compare where the biggest leadership issues may lie
• ☑ Use objective metrics rather than anecdote (“X team lost 15 % of talent this year”)
• ☑ Correlate leadership metrics with business outcomes (profit, innovation, customer satisfaction)

Case example:
A global pharmaceutical firm (let’s call them “PharmaGlobal Inc.”) noticed that across its regional markets, teams led by recently promoted directors had significantly higher attrition, slower product launches and patchy engagement. The HR-OD team concluded there was a latent leadership gap before launching a global leadership development programme.

How to Conduct a Leadership Gap Analysis

Step 1: Identify Critical Leadership Competencies

Start by defining what good leadership means in your organisation now and for the future. For multinational companies, this often includes competencies such as strategic perspective, change leadership, cross-cultural collaboration, talent development, adaptability and influencing without authority. (CCL research)

Questions to answer:

• Which leadership roles (level, geography, function) are most critical for the strategy?
• What competencies differentiate those roles?
• What behaviours or outcomes do you expect from these leaders in 12-24 months?

Output: A competency framework or “target state” description of leadership.
Tip: Engage business-unit heads and C-suite to validate prioritised competencies so the analysis is business-anchored.

Step 2: Gather Data (360s, assessments, feedback, KPIs)

Once you’ve defined “what good looks like”, you need to assess “what is”. Multiple data sources give you triangulated insight:

• 360° assessments: Feedback from peers, direct reports, supervisors.
• Leadership assessments: Psychometric tools or behavioural assessments.
• Performance metrics: Retention, delivery timelines, engagement, revenue growth.
• Qualitative feedback: Interviews or focus groups with business partners and stakeholders.
• Benchmarking: Compare current leadership strength with external norms or future expectations.

Checklist – data capture:

• ☑ Select a sample of leaders representing critical roles.
• ☑ Deploy 360 assessments and agree timelines for collection.
• ☑ Gather business-unit metrics aligned to leadership outcomes.
• ☑ Conduct stakeholder interviews/focus groups.
• ☑ Collate benchmarking or normative data for comparison.

Step 3: Map Current vs. Desired State

Compare “where we are” vs “where we need to be” and quantify the gap.

Competency	Current Score	Target Score	Gap	Comments
Strategic perspective	3.2	4.5	1.3	High business risk (global growth)
Talent development	2.9	4.0	1.1	High turnover in key functions
Change leadership	3.4	4.2	0.8	Moderate risk

A gap analysis of this nature gives you a clear starting point for prioritising development efforts.

Using Data to Prioritise Development Efforts

Once you have the gap-map, you can make strategic decisions about where to invest:

• Prioritise by gap size × business impact.
• Segment development by role or level.
• Allocate resources accordingly.
• Track baseline metrics and measure progress.
• Communicate the rationale to stakeholders.

This transforms leadership development from a general activity into a targeted business investment with measurable ROI.

Tools and Frameworks That Help (70-20-10, competency models)

1. 70-20-10 Model
This learning model suggests 70 % experiential, 20 % social and 10 % formal learning. Use it to plan interventions once gaps are known, balancing stretch assignments, coaching and formal training for optimal impact.

2. Competency Models
A competency framework allows consistent diagnosis, comparison and alignment. For instance, CCL identified nine critical leadership competencies where gaps are common, such as leading change and strategic perspective.

Additional tools:

• 360° feedback platforms with benchmarking capability
• Analytics dashboards linking leadership data to business KPIs
• Heat-map visualisations of leadership readiness by unit or geography
• External benchmarking data for maturity comparison

From Insight to Action: Building a Focused Leadership Plan

Once gaps are understood and prioritised, move to the action phase with a focused leadership plan:

1. Define learning objectives – Use the gap analysis to set measurable goals (e.g., raise strategic perspective score from 3.2 to 4.2 in 18 months).
2. Segment participants and tailor interventions – Different levels and regions require distinct approaches.
3. Design the learning mix – Apply 70-20-10 for experiential, social and formal balance.
4. Align with business metrics and define ROI – Link development to tangible outcomes like retention or time-to-market.
5. Build governance and accountability – Appoint sponsors, track progress and re-assess regularly.
6. Communicate progress and celebrate impact – Share success stories to sustain momentum.

Short Case Example:
Novo Nordisk, a global healthcare company, identified that nearly 500 people-managers across 36 countries lacked alignment to target leadership competencies. They defined five priority competencies, implemented assessments in 13 languages and rolled out coaching aligned to strategy (ccl.org case study). Result: clear linkage of leadership development to business goals and measurable culture improvement.

By following this structured approach, recognising the importance of gap-analysis, spotting early signs, conducting rigorous diagnosis, prioritising based on business risk, using frameworks, and translating insight into action—you’ll invest in leadership development where it matters most.

Read more about our Executive Coaching and Leadership Development Programs to see how targeted coaching accelerates results.

 

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FAQ

Q1: How often should we re-assess our leadership gap analysis?
Every 12 – 18 months or after major business changes (acquisitions, transformations, etc.). Leadership competencies must evolve with strategy.

Q2: What if we have leadership gaps but limited budget?
Prioritise by business impact and use low-cost, high-leverage methods like peer coaching, mentoring, micro-learning, and focused 1:1 coaching for key roles.

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Tagged as Leadership gap analysis