🧩 how to play talent tetris

stop forcing square pegs into round roles

March 10, 2025

In partnership with

Happy Monday HR friends!👋

And of course, Happy International Bagpipe Day to those who celebrate (why is there no bagpipe emoji: shocking!)

In today’s edition, we’re pondering internal mobility and role transitions🧠 

Because when someone’s performance dips, the first isn’t always a PIP. Sometimes their skill sets would just better suit a different department, role or team!

We’ll be in touch with more content to help you stay on top of the ever changing HR landscape and create a happier workplace, next week !✨💪

In Today’s Edition

⛰️ Moving People or Moving Mountains?


🛋️ The Break Room: How robustly are you playing talent tetris?


📚 Human Readsources: Starbucks CEO demands office return, accountability improvements, Government workers face challenging private-sector job transition, Social Security updates bring payment and eligibility changes.


Dun, dun dun dun, dun dun dun, dun dun dun. Dun dun dun. Dun dun. Dun. Dun. DUN. DUN!

tetris GIF

For anyone not around in the 80s and 90s, that was supposed to be the Tetris theme tune 😄 

In today's competitive talent landscape, a staggering 94% of employees say they would stay longer at companies that invest in their career development. Yet most organizations continue losing top performers to external opportunities, watching helplessly as institutional knowledge walks out the door.


The real tragedy isn't just the cost of turnover - it's the missed opportunity to retain and realign talent we already have. When employees feel stuck in ill-fitting roles, both motivation and performance suffer, creating a downward spiral that impacts the entire organization.


There is hope though! In HR, we can help them transform this challenge into a strategic advantage! By architecting thoughtful internal mobility programs, they can create win-win scenarios that match evolving business needs with employees' career aspirations and capabilities.


So let's stop viewing internal mobility as a nice-to-have perk and recognize it as a business imperative. Organizations that fail to embrace strategic talent mobility risk watching their best people leave for growth opportunities elsewhere, while those that get it right will build more adaptive, engaged, and sustainable workforces.


PS: if you want to get some serious work done today, put your headphones on and try this... 👇

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⛰️ Because moving people shouldn’t feel like moving mountains…


Internal mobility isn't just another HR buzzword - it's becoming a survival strategy. With talent shortages hitting hard and external hiring costs skyrocketing, smart companies are looking inward.


Moving people around isn't as simple as playing musical chairs with your org chart.


The data makes a compelling case. Companies with strong internal mobility programs retain employees nearly twice as long, and some organizations (like Mastercard) are saving millions by prioritizing internal moves over external hires.


When you nail internal mobility, you're not just filling roles - you're building institutional knowledge and boosting engagement.


But just beward of "talent hoarding" (yep it's a real thing) where managers often resist letting their best people move on.


Create clear mobility pathways, use AI-powered talent marketplaces to match skills with opportunities, and most importantly, get buy-in from middle management. Because forcing people into roles they don't fit isn't just bad for morale - it's expensive, disruptive, and usually ends with someone updating their LinkedIn profile?!


🔗 Relevant links

👀 TLDR

While internal mobility is crucial (and can save serious $$$), forcing perfect fits usually backfires. Focus on creating pathways and opportunities - not perfectly-shaped org chart boxes. 🧩

⚡ Takeaway and Try

  1. 🤝 Institute a "Role Shadow Program" where employees spend one day per quarter shadowing a colleague in a different department. This promotes cross-functional understanding, reveals potential career paths, and builds internal networks. Create a structured sign-up system, develop shadowing guidelines, and collect feedback through post-experience surveys. Track internal mobility rates and cross-departmental collaboration metrics.

  2. 👥 Launch quarterly "Career Mapping Conversations" that go beyond traditional development plans by exploring lateral moves and cross-functional opportunities. This reduces turnover by creating multiple growth paths and uncovers hidden talent. Provide managers with conversation guides, create a skills inventory database, and establish clear protocols for internal transfers. Measure retention rates, internal placement success, and employee satisfaction scores.

  3. 📈 Develop a "Skills Discovery Dashboard" where employees can publicly tag their hidden talents, interests, and expertise beyond their current role. This creates a searchable internal talent marketplace and facilitates project staffing. Build a user-friendly platform, incentivize profile completion, and regularly highlight success stories. Monitor profile engagement rates, cross-departmental project assignments, and skill utilization metrics.

  4. 🎓 Create monthly "Knowledge Exchange Sessions" where employees teach skills from their previous roles or personal interests to colleagues. This builds a learning culture and identifies unexpected capability gaps. Establish a structured submission process, provide presentation support, and maintain a recorded library. Track attendance, skill adoption rates, and participant feedback scores.

  5. 🌟 Implement a "Talent Mobility Matrix" that maps current roles against potential lateral moves based on transferable skills. This provides visibility into non-traditional career paths and helps managers support diverse growth opportunities. Develop skill compatibility frameworks, create transition guides, and train managers on mobility discussions. Measure the diversity of career moves, success rates of role transitions, and employee growth satisfaction.


📚 Human Readsources

🏢 Starbucks CEO Demands Office Return Amid Sales Slump (HR Grapevine) - Starbucks CEO demands office return, accountability amid declining sales.


⚖️ Federal Workers Face Tough Switch to Private Sector (Work Life) - Federal workers must adapt skills for private sector transition.


📊 2025 Social Security Changes: Key Updates for Beneficiaries (The HR Digest) Key changes affect benefits and eligibility.


Thanks for reading to the end and we hope today’s edition sparked some new ideas for your workplace! 🧠

We know you’re super busy and really appreciate you letting us into your inbox a few times a week. 😀

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