Who should I promote?
You are a CEO and you are weighing options for filling up the position of the Operations Head, which has fallen vacant because the previous occupant left his job. The previous occupant could not cope with the job pressure.
You have a couple of successful project leaders. Should you chose one of them or should you look beyond?
The usual tendency is to reward good performers by a promotion. That would seem fair. But it is better to ask yourselves some questions. Here are they and some thoughts too.
What are the additional skills that the Operations Head needs to have over above what a competent project leader needs to have?
I think that the foremost skill a good operations head must have is the ability to assess, select, and develop competent project leaders. A strong project leader may be good in use of project management tools and may also be resourceful in solving day to day problems. The operations head, on the other hand, needs to be skilled in dealing with longer term needs like developing more versatile pool of resources, establishing ealry warning systems, cost management etc.
Another critical skill that an operations head needs to have is the ability to influence things horizontally. Even a good project leader may not have been tested on this.
One more skill that project leaders may not get tested on is the ability to diagnose (processes) and take preventive actions.
Why did the previous head fail to meet job pressures?
It is likely that the previous occupant of this post lacked the above skills. It is also possible that your operations group lacks some capabilities that are needed to meet client needs. It is possible that the previous head did not have the diagnostic skills to spot the deficiencies and skills to build new capabilities in your team.
It is very risky to choose someone for promotion on the basis of success in previous job. The risks go beyond immediate failures. Sometimes hardworking people overcome their lack of above skills by resorting to working extra hard (but still in their old areas of comfort), making their people to work unreasonably harder, and other such heroic methods. These can be damaging -talented people may leave, your organization may become more susceptible to shocks.
What is the way out?
1. For every important leadership position, identify differentiating skills needed at that level compared to lower levels. See e.g. Career Planning. Use these to evaluate candidates.
2. Establish ongoing leadership development programs. These programs will not only develop people but they will also provide you with more informed answers when you evaluate people for promotions.