How to Be a Champion for the Business Value of Career Development
Gymnast Simone Biles, winner of 11 Olympic medals and 30 world championship medals (23 of them gold!), didn’t need to perform backflips to fire up 10,000 talent pros at last week’s Association for Talent Development Conference (ATD) in Washington, D.C.
She only needed to share her story.
A former foster child, Simone credited her adoptive mom for teaching her the power of goal-setting: She described her ongoing aspiration “to be better than I was at my last competition and to show up better than my best self yesterday.”
Hearing these words from “the GOAT” (Simone is arguably the Greatest of All Time) set the stage for my own ATD workshop, “How to Champion Career Development to Leaders and Stakeholders.” The objective? Help attendees rally energy for their own important goal: turning more executives into superfans of the business value of career development.
Read on to learn what’s holding career development programs back and how a new framework can help move them forward.
A challenging path requires persuasive skills
Did you know Simone has invented five entirely new gymnastics skills? My favorite might be the double-twisting double backflip dismount off the balance beam, a move she debuted in 2019. Simone’s coaches believed in her and actually convinced her to try out these new skills. It was their belief in her and advocacy for her that enabled her to defy the norms.
Imagine what our employees can do with this type of advocacy.
Of course, getting career development on the C-suite’s radar can feel like its own high-stakes routine.
LinkedIn data tells us two-thirds of organizations fail to deliver meaningful career development programs (such as leadership training, mentorships, and internal mobility). Meanwhile, the top three barriers to career development are daunting and awfully similar: 50% of talent pros say managers lack support to deliver career programs; 45% say employees lack support; and 33% say talent teams lack support.
Who has the power to remove barriers by shifting priorities and redirecting investments? CEOs and other executive stakeholders.
Building evidence to win over these business leaders requires that we talent pros cultivate new skills of our own, such as C-suite influence and data storytelling.
Fortunately, none of these skills is quite as challenging as the double-twisting double backflip dismount.
Follow the CHAMP framework to gain buy-in for career development
Sometimes a framework is all you need to to start growing your skills as you tackle an otherwise overwhelming endeavor. In my ATD workshop, I shared the CHAMP framework to break down the quest for C-suite support into achievable sprints.
After all, even Simone had to master cartwheels and handsprings before landing the moves that now bear her name.
Here’s how CHAMP works:
Step 1 — “C” stands for “Connect career initiatives with strategic business goals.”
Career development programs correlate with multiple indicators of business success. But the most compelling business case for your leaders will come only after you understand your organization’s unique business strategy and build programs tailored to accelerate its top-level goals.
Consider a company whose future depends on driving business expansion in international markets. Career programs that support global business success could include:
- international stretch assignments that develop global business acumen
- culture and language training programs with advancement recognition
- advancement criteria that includes global relationship-building as a core competency
Step 2 — “H” stands for “Hear stakeholder input with a listening tour.”
Direct engagement with leaders is critical for securing buy-in. Schedule focused meetings to understand their talent priorities and connect them directly to broader business objectives. During these conversations, identify specific pain points, such as skill gaps, retention challenges, or succession planning concerns.
Use these discussions to generate early enthusiasm while also listening for recurring themes across departments. These patterns will reveal which programs can deliver the greatest impact.
Step 3 — “A” stands for “Assess options.”
Based on the insights from your listening tour, evaluate potential initiatives that align with the business needs you’ve identified. Consider a menu of options, such as the top 10 most common career programs from this year’s Workplace Learning Report:
- Leadership training
- Sharing internal job openings
- Creating individual career development plans or maps
- Mentorship programs
- Recognition and reward programs (excluding promotions)
- Opportunities to participate in cross-functional projects
- Internal mobility programs
- Tuition reimbursement/continuing education support
- Peer learning groups
- Job rotation initiatives
Select options that directly address the strategic priorities you uncovered in steps 1 and 2.
Step 4 — “M” stands for “Move forward with a pilot program.”
Before you get the greenlight for an organization-wide program, it pays to launch a targeted pilot to validate your approach. Select a specific team or department that represents a microcosm of your broader workforce — one with varied skill levels, roles, and career aspirations.
Establish a clear timeframe — typically three to six months — for your pilot. This creates urgency and accountability while giving participants adequate time to engage with the program.
Equally important is establishing specific metrics that align with both immediate objectives and long-term strategic goals. Track outcomes such as skill acquisition rates, internal mobility statistics, employee engagement scores, and retention improvements.
Throughout the pilot, document your process, including challenges and adjustments. Consider using structured feedback through surveys and focus groups to capture both quantitative data and qualitative insights to enable real-time refinements.
If all goes well, your pilot approach can transform theoretical ideas into a battle-tested program ready for organization-wide adoption.
Step 5 — “P” stands for “Plan and promote bigger steps forward.”
If your pilot delivers promising results, leverage this momentum for a wider rollout. Use your documented success to secure necessary resources — budget, technology, and people to do the work. Develop a phased rollout strategy that prioritizes high-need areas while managing change effectively.
Continue using clear metrics to track long-term progress and improve the work. Over time, your successful experiment may grow into a sustainable enterprise-wide ecosystem that delivers ongoing value.
Final thoughts: Consider a strategic pause
Simone — the most decorated gymnast in history — is also famous for taking a break. During the 2020 Summer Olympics (held in 2021 due to COVID), she temporarily withdrew after experiencing “the twisties,” a loss of awareness while twirling midair. But she soon came back and earned a bronze medal in the balance beam.
Talent practitioners have a lot of reasons to feel the twisties right now. As the world spins, I hope you’ll take a short break to consider the CHAMP framework and then ask: What if my organization could be the GOAT for career development?
