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An internal mobility strategy goes beyond filling roles — it connects talent with business goals and drives growth at all levels. When employees see clear ways to grow in their careers, their engagement and productivity soar. Yet, Achiever’s Workforce Institute’s (AWI) Skills Matrix report reveals only 20% of employees believe their company helps them build the skills needed to progress.
Organizations can leverage tools like a recognition platform to understand their current talent, where they’re excelling, and where they might need support. With the help of always-on feedback and reporting analytics, companies can create more intentional paths for career advancement, making it easier for employees to move within the organization.
When companies truly understand their employees’ strengths and career goals, they can create growth opportunities that keep teams engaged, motivated, and invested in the success of the business. Achievers help bring these internal mobility strategies to life by offering real-time insights, recognition, and feedback — empowering organizations to tap into their top talent and build a culture where career development thrives.
What is internal mobility?
Internal mobility is the movement of employees within a company — whether through promotions, lateral shifts, or skill-building opportunities. It’s a strategic approach to talent development that helps businesses retain top performers, build critical skills, and create a culture of growth. When done right, internal mobility benefits both employees and employers, driving engagement, reducing turnover, and ensuring the right people are in the right roles.
Types of internal mobility in the workplace
There are many ways to encourage employee development within your organization. Each path helps employees expand their skills while keeping top talent engaged.
Here are key types of internal mobility in the workplace:
- Promotions: Moving up to a higher role with more responsibility and better pay, creating a clear career path.
- Lateral moves: Taking on a different role at the same level to build new skills and collaborate across teams.
- Project-based or temporary assignments: Tackling short-term projects to gain experience, develop new skills, and expand networks.
- Role expansions: Adding new responsibilities within your current role to keep work engaging and support career growth.
How to build a successful internal mobility strategy
Creating a successful internal mobility strategy ensures employees have the chance to think bigger, work more collaboratively, and develop their skill set — and recognition plays an important part in the process.
Here’s how to create a thoughtful plan that connects employee development with organizational success:
1. Provide career pathways
Clear career progression paths empower employees to see how they can grow within the company. Recognition platforms can help map out employee capabilities and growth opportunities, offering transparent career paths by tracking skills and achievements — offering clarity that helps drive engagement and allows employees to envision their future.
2. Increase visibility into internal opportunities
Creating visibility for internal roles is key to empowering employees to pursue new opportunities. Recognition platforms offer insight into performance and skill development, making it easier for managers to identify internal talent and provide access to open roles, helping employees explore new career paths.
3. Leverage recognition to identify and promote talent
Recognition isn’t just about celebrating successes — it’s also about spotting potential. A recognition platform allows managers to track employee performance and behavior patterns, giving them the insights needed to promote individuals who’ve shown leadership, collaboration, or problem-solving abilities.
4. Ensure manager support
Managers play an essential role in employee mobility, from recognizing potential to guiding career conversations. When supported by a system that allows leaders to track employee progress and feedback, managers can better nurture their team’s growth, helping employees advance in their careers.
5. Invest in skills development and training
According to Achievers 2024 State of Recognition report, 65% of HR leaders use the data from their recognition platform to support learning and development. Through recognition, people leaders can encourage skill-building by celebrating moments when employees have completed a course or new project. This shows that the company values personal growth and is ready to support employees in acquiring new skills.
6. Engage in continuous feedback and development conversations
To make sure internal mobility stays on track, it’s important to get continuous feedback and have open conversations with employees about their growth. Regular check-ins and surveys, integrated into a recognition program, help ensure employees feel supported, and provide valuable insights into their goals and engagement levels.
7. Measure and optimize internal mobility efforts
Tracking metrics like mobility rates, employee engagement, and retention through a recognition program helps identify what’s working and where changes are needed. By analyzing trends in recognition and career growth, managers can refine their strategies, optimize their internal mobility efforts, and ensure they’re heading in the right direction.
Why internal mobility matters for businesses
Internal mobility isn’t just about career progression — it’s a key driver of engagement, retention, and business success. Here’s why internal mobility matters and how Achievers is helping organizations make the most of their talent:
- Improves retention and reduced turnover: Internal mobility keeps talent engaged and loyal, reducing the need to hire externally. Achievers provides real-time reporting tools to help you recognize your top performers, making it easier to identify and promote internal talent.
- Fosters skill development: Internal mobility helps employees grow their skills to meet shifting company needs. The Achievers platform helps track skill development and identify opportunities for growth. By recognizing learning and progress, you empower employees to build new capabilities while working toward business goals.
- Increases employee engagement: When employees have opportunities to take on new roles or projects, they stay motivated. Achievers’ employee recognition software celebrates milestones and provides valuable feedback, fostering a growth-oriented culture that drives productivity and keeps employees engaged.
- Access to a ready talent pool: Internal mobility allows businesses to quickly fill open roles with qualified candidates. Achievers helps identify top talent by tracking performance and providing insights on who is ready for the next challenge, making recruitment faster and more efficient.
How Achievers supports internal mobility
Achievers helps build a company culture rooted in growth and opportunity. Our science-backed platform offers a smarter approach to internal mobility — driving 5x the impact on key business drivers. We help employers invest in their talent and empower employees to realize their full potential.
Here’s how we help organizations leverage internal mobility to drive business success:
1. Recognizes skill development
Achievers makes it easier by providing near real-time data access to track growth and skill development. With the most comprehensive recognition and rewards data, managers can celebrate key milestones and stay on top of progress, ensuring employees feel valued and motivated to grow.
2. Aligns skills with opportunities
According to Achievers Workforce Institute’s (AWI) Skills Gap report, half of HR leaders struggle to identify employees with high-priority skills. Achievers helps solve this with industry-leading recognition and rewards data, business intelligence (BI) insights, and expert customer success support — helping organizations set benchmarks, track trends, and match employees to the right opportunities.
3. Encourages internal mobility through rewards
Engaging employees in internal mobility programs can be a game-changer, and Achievers makes it even more rewarding. Through our points-based rewards platform, employees can earn rewards for completing career development milestones and redeem them for the products or experiences that matter to them the most — ensuring those meaningful incentives keep them motivated on their career journey.
Strengthen your workforce with internal mobility
Internal mobility is a powerful tool for nurturing talent, improving retention, and driving organizational success. By integrating Achievers’ recognition and rewards platform, you can empower employees to grow within your organization.
Our real-time data insights and self-serve reporting capabilities help you identify top talent, celebrate achievements, and align skills with new opportunities. Through workforce science and enhanced R&R data, we give you the tools you need to invest in your top talent.
With Achievers, you can build a thriving culture, ensuring that internal mobility becomes a key driver of success and engagement for your workforce.
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