When making an informed decision about placing a candidate in a leadership role, the following assumptions can help frame the evaluative platform:
A candidate’s leadership behaviors (competencies or practices) are influenced by his/her experiences (work history, education, life endeavors, etc.) and fundamental psychological make-up.
Understanding the relationship and interplay between one’s experiences and psychological make-up greatly enhances predictability about (candidate-role) suitability and fit as well as future potential.
A candidate’s experiences can be examined through in-depth interview techniques such as “motivational” interviewing, “behavioral” interviewing, etc.
An individual’s psychological make-up is built upon a collection of and the chemistry between innate traits, qualities, characteristics and aptitudes.
Traits, qualities, characteristics and aptitudes serve as the fundamental ingredients that make-up one’s leadership potential and behavioral practices.
The stronger the alignment between a candidate’s innate traits, qualities, characteristics and aptitudes and those of a successful contributor, the greater the likelihood of one’s high-potential and high-performance in a given role.
Predicting one’s future potential and real-time performance is best achieved when a collection of evaluative techniques are employed (i.e., well-designed interviews, psychological assessment – profile screening and in-depth evaluation, referencing, etc.)
Keep in mind, the richer each trait, quality, characteristic and aptitude is, the greater the likelihood that one has the capacity to develop impressive leadership efficacy, especially when one’s experiences are well-aligned.