Leadership Development Embedded into Culture of Top Companies


The leadership practices of the world's top global companies are an inherent part of their organizational culture, and their development of future leaders represents their long-term investment in running the business.

"By having the right leadership practices and processes in place, maintaining a strict focus on critical talent at all levels, and having a continuous desire to improve, [they] have cultures that cultivate and nurture their talent, and a reputation for doing it well," says Bob Gandossy, principal and a global practice leader in Hewitt's Consulting business.

The firm's 2007 list of what it describes as "Global Top Companies for Leaders" — including Nokia Corporation, Procter & Gamble and General Electric — features other leading companies that have built leadership development into their DNA.

These companies have also invested in developing global pipelines of management talent backed by a commitment from their senior-most leaders to continue investing in the intellectual capital of their organizations.

Top global employers are also focusing on growth as they enter new international markets and capitalize on the effects of globalization. Hewitt found that nearly 70 percent of the Global Top Companies cite business growth as their single most pressing organizational challenge over the next three to five years.