Nashville, Tenn. — Jan. 11

Even with a high unemployment rate, more than half of large and midsized companies report not having enough management successors currently onboard, according to a survey by OI Partners, a global career transition and executive coaching firm.

• 54% of companies in the survey said they do not have enough qualified successors now working for them to succeed their executives and managers.

• Only 32% of companies report currently having enough management successors in place.

• 14% of companies are not sure whether they have enough future leaders already in their organizations.

The survey included responses from 212 primarily large and midsized employers throughout North America, and it has an error rate of +/- 6.7%, according to OI Partners.

“The survey reveals a real opportunity for executives and managers — especially those now out of work — to show they can accomplish desired results for a prospective employer,” said Tim Schoonover, chairman of OI Partners.

“This is also a wake-up call for current employees to prove they should be considered for promotion now or be placed on the fast track,” added Schoonover.

The biggest source of a typical company’s future leaders is its own high-potential employees. Employers are more often developing their own high-potential employees into future leaders than they are promoting their now-ready executives, hiring from their competitors or recruiting from outside their industries, according to the survey. (Respondents were allowed to select more than one answer.)

• 72% of companies plan to internally develop their high-potential employees to become future top management.

• 54% expect to promote their now-ready executives to become management successors.

• 40% plan to hire future leaders from their competitors.

• 26% anticipate recruiting future leaders from outside their industries.

Companies that currently do not have enough management successors are more than twice as likely to hire from their competitors and are almost two times more likely to hire from outside their industries than those that have enough future management talent already in place, according to the survey.