Among the top three companies rated—Procter & Gamble, GE, and IBM—here are
some illustrative practices. Procter & Gamble exercises a razor-like focus on internal
succession planning at all levels. From its inception 175 years ago, promotion from
within has been a hallmark of the company. To facilitate that it uses a rigorous process
with managers to develop managers below them. In general, your boss can’t be pro-
moted until you are ready to be promoted. Each year, the CEO personally looks at the
top 300 to 400 executives and reviews the progress of key candidates with the board
of directors. The most important element is short feedback loops that include
360-degree reviews, where the system tries to prevent derailment.