How to Build Diverse Leadership Pipelines That Expand Opportunity

Organizations have spent years discussing diversity in leadership, yet many continue to see the same patterns at the executive level. A McKinsey & Company Women in the Workplace study shows that progress remains uneven, with women and other underrepresented groups still facing barriers to advancement and career-building opportunities.

Too often, succession planning begins only after leadership vacancies arise, limiting organizations to candidates who have already received the greatest visibility and access. Members of the Senior Executive HR Think Tank say stronger leadership pipelines require a different approach: examining the systems that identify, develop and advance talent long before promotion decisions are made. Their insights show that equitable pipelines are not about lowering standards, but about creating fairer pathways for talented people to demonstrate their potential.

Redesign The System Before You Build The Pipeline

Many organizations start the conversation in the wrong place, according to Christopher Bylone, Principal Strategist at Innovation Unbiased, a strategic consultancy that helps organizations strengthen workplace cultures through data-driven belonging strategies. Drawing on extensive experience leading global inclusion initiatives and advising organizations on culture transformation, Bylone recommends shifting attention away from the pipeline itself and toward the systems that create it.

“The phrase ‘diverse and inclusive leadership pipeline’ is where most organizations go wrong,” Bylone says. “A pipeline is what you get, not what you build.”

That distinction changes the conversation considerably. Instead of asking why leadership teams lack diversity, executives should examine whether their hiring, development and promotion processes create equitable opportunities from the beginning.

Bylone explains that organizations should “start upstream” by evaluating whether leadership pathways are genuinely accessible. He encourages leaders to ask difficult questions about whether organizational practices define inclusive leadership behaviors clearly and whether opportunities remain available to employees who may lack influential sponsors or informal networks.

“Diversity is the result,” he says. “Equity and accessibility are the building blocks.”

His perspective challenges organizations to rethink why promising talent disappears throughout the leadership journey. Rather than assuming candidates leave because they lack ambition or capability, Bylone suggests that organizations often unintentionally design systems that repeatedly produce the same outcomes.

“The funnel is not leaking,” he says. “It is working exactly as designed. Until you change the design, it will keep returning the same people it was built to return.”

That systems-first perspective provides a foundation for every leadership development effort that follows.

Create Everyday Opportunities For Leadership To Emerge

Once organizations redesign their systems, the next challenge is ensuring employees have meaningful opportunities to demonstrate leadership before formal succession planning begins.

Nicole Cable, Chief People and Experience Officer and founder of C3 Health, says many organizations devote too much energy to identifying future leaders while overlooking the environments that allow leadership to emerge naturally. Her experience leading enterprise-wide culture transformation, operational turnarounds and talent strategy initiatives across healthcare, hospitality and customer-centric organizations informs her view that leadership development begins long before promotion discussions.

“Organizations spend too much time trying to identify future leaders and not enough time creating environments where leadership can emerge,” Cable says.

Rather than relying on annual talent reviews, she encourages leaders to pay attention to the daily experiences that shape careers.

“The strongest leadership pipelines are built long before someone is considered for promotion,” she says. “They are built in everyday moments—who gets invited to solve difficult problems, who is trusted with stretch assignments, who receives meaningful feedback, who is given visibility and who is sponsored when they are not in the room.”

Cable notes that organizations frequently mistake visibility for leadership potential, unintentionally rewarding those with greater exposure instead of those with the strongest capabilities.

“Leadership potential is often overlooked because we confuse visibility with capability,” she says.

She recommends that HR leaders intentionally design development systems that provide equitable access to meaningful work experiences instead of allowing opportunities to emerge informally.

“Opportunity should be intentional, not accidental,” Cable says. “When organizations broaden access to opportunity, they do more than build diverse leadership pipelines. They build stronger organizations because the best ideas, perspectives and leaders are no longer limited to the people who were easiest to see.”

For Cable, the takeaway is simple:

“The best leadership pipelines are built by design, not by chance.”

Together, Cable’s recommendations reinforce Bylone’s broader point: Organizations don’t create stronger leadership benches by changing people. They create them by changing systems that consistently expand opportunity.

Look Beyond Traditional Leadership Profiles

After organizations create more equitable opportunities, the next step is rethinking how they identify leadership potential in the first place.

Britton Bloch, VP, Global Talent Acquisition Strategy and Head of Recruiting at Navy Federal Credit Union, says organizations often narrow their future leadership pool by relying on outdated assumptions about who looks like a leader. Instead of emphasizing tenure, prestigious résumés or traditional career paths, she recommends evaluating the capabilities that predict leadership success.

“The strongest leadership pipelines expand opportunity rather than narrow it,” Bloch says.

She encourages organizations to move beyond credentials and focus on qualities that can be demonstrated across every level of the workforce.

“Organizations should shift from selecting leaders based on pedigree, tenure or traditional career paths to identifying demonstrated capabilities such as learning agility, judgment, influence, adaptability and the ability to develop others,” she says.

That approach requires transparent expectations and consistent evaluation standards so employees understand what leadership success looks like and have fair access to opportunities that prepare them for advancement.

“Transparent criteria, consistent assessments and equitable access to stretch assignments, mentoring and sponsorship help uncover high-potential talent that might otherwise be overlooked,” Bloch says.

She emphasizes that leadership potential exists throughout the organization—not only among employees who have followed conventional career trajectories.

“Leadership potential exists throughout the organization, not just in expected places,” she says. “When advancement is based on capability and contribution, not prestige or résumé, organizations build more diverse leadership pipelines, strengthen trust and ensure future leaders better reflect the talent, perspectives and communities they serve.”

Bloch’s perspective builds naturally on the earlier discussion. Once organizations intentionally create opportunities, they must also ensure they are measuring the right qualities when selecting tomorrow’s leaders.

“Leadership pipelines rarely lack talent. They lack visibility.”

– Sharifah Masten, Managing Partner and Principal Advisor at Counterpoint Collective

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Expand Visibility Into Emerging Talent

Even organizations that define leadership well can overlook future executives if managers rely only on familiar faces when identifying high-potential employees.

Sharifah Masten, Managing Partner and Principal Advisor at Counterpoint Collective, helps organizations align workforce strategy with business strategy, leadership development and organizational transformation. Drawing on executive HR leadership experience across the military, nonprofit and corporate sectors, she encourages leaders to make talent discovery more intentional.

“Leadership pipelines rarely lack talent,” Masten says. “They lack visibility.”

She notes that many managers naturally invest in employees they know best, unintentionally limiting both organizational performance and diversity.

“Too often, leaders develop people they know best instead of intentionally looking across the organization for emerging talent,” she says. “The result isn’t just a less diverse pipeline—it’s a weaker one.”

Rather than concentrating solely on employees who are ready for immediate promotion, Masten recommends expanding succession planning to include those with the capacity to grow over time.

“The most effective organizations build leadership pipelines by expanding how leaders identify potential,” she says. “That means looking beyond current performance, title or proximity and asking who has demonstrated the capacity to lead with the right experiences and development.”

One practical way to accomplish that, she says, is through structured talent reviews that evaluate both current readiness and future potential.

“Identify not only who’s ready today but who could be ready in the next 12 to 24 months,” Masten says. “Then support those individuals with stretch assignments, cross-functional exposure and mentoring.”

She concludes with a reminder that broadening opportunity strengthens leadership quality rather than lowering expectations.

“Organizations don’t build stronger leadership pipelines by lowering standards,” she says. “They build them by broadening access to the experiences that prepare people to meet those standards.”

Her recommendations shift the conversation from identifying talent to deliberately preparing future leaders.

“Leaders are held accountable through measurable outcomes tied to representation, readiness, advancement and retention.”

– Dr. Curtis Odom, Managing Partner of Prescient Strategists and Executive Professor of Management and Organizational Development at Northeastern University's D'Amore-McKim School of Business

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Hold Leaders Accountable For Building The Bench

Intentional development systems only succeed when leadership accountability becomes part of organizational culture.

Dr. Curtis Odom, Managing Partner of Prescient Strategists, has spent more than 25 years helping organizations navigate transformation, leadership development and workforce strategy. He says successful organizations focus on expanding opportunity while holding leaders responsible for measurable talent outcomes.

“Building a diverse and inclusive leadership pipeline begins by expanding access to opportunity, not lowering standards,” Odom says.

Like several of his fellow Think Tank members, Odom emphasizes the importance of transparency throughout leadership development.

“High-performing organizations use transparent promotion criteria, structured talent reviews, equitable access to stretch assignments, mentoring, sponsorship and leadership development for employees at every level,” he says.

Where his perspective adds new depth is in executive accountability.

“Leaders are held accountable through measurable outcomes tied to representation, readiness, advancement and retention,” Odom says.

He also encourages organizations to reduce bias early in the leadership journey rather than waiting until promotion decisions are made.

“Inclusive pipelines succeed when potential is identified early, bias is reduced in talent decisions and every employee has a fair opportunity to grow into leadership roles.”

Taken together, Odom’s recommendations illustrate an important point: Inclusive leadership development isn’t simply an HR initiative. It is an organizational performance strategy that requires measurable expectations, executive ownership and ongoing evaluation.

“People leave when they don’t see paths forward or feel they must conform to advance.”

– Dr. Jonathan H. Westover, Associate Dean and Director of HR Programs at Western Governors University, Founder and CEO of Human Capital Innovations

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Build Inclusion Into Every Stage Of Leadership Development

By the time organizations have expanded opportunity, redefined leadership potential and established greater accountability, the next challenge is ensuring those practices are embedded throughout the talent lifecycle rather than treated as isolated initiatives.

Dr. Jonathan H. Westover, Founder and CEO of Human Capital Innovations, Chief Workforce and Learning Officer at Future State University and Professor of Organizational Leadership and Change at Utah Valley University, has spent more than two decades helping organizations strengthen leadership, culture and organizational effectiveness. Through Human Capital Innovations, a leadership consulting and coaching firm, he advises organizations on developing people-centered strategies that improve long-term organizational performance.

Westover says organizations should think of leadership development as an integrated process rather than a single program.

“Building diverse leadership pipelines requires intentional action at every stage,” he says.

That begins with broadening where organizations look for talent. Instead of relying on familiar recruiting channels, Westover recommends partnering with diverse professional associations and historically underserved institutions while incorporating practices such as blind résumé reviews to reduce unconscious bias during early screening.

Recruitment, however, is only the beginning.

“Create structured development programs with clear advancement criteria,” he says. “Implement sponsorship initiatives where senior leaders actively advocate for high-potential diverse talent, not just mentor them.”

Westover also encourages executives to regularly examine whether leadership expectations unintentionally favor one communication style, educational background or career path over another.

“Address systemic barriers by examining your evaluation processes for hidden bias,” he says. “Are leadership qualities defined through a narrow cultural lens? Diversify interview panels and decision-makers.”

Like several other Think Tank members, Westover underscores the importance of measurement. However, his focus extends beyond representation alone.

“Make inclusion measurable,” he says. “Track demographic data at each pipeline stage and hold leaders accountable for progress.”

Perhaps most importantly, organizations must create cultures where future leaders want to remain.

“Retention matters as much as recruitment,” Westover says. “People leave when they don’t see paths forward or feel they must conform to advance.”

His recommendations tie together the recurring themes throughout this discussion: equitable hiring, intentional development, executive sponsorship, objective evaluation and accountability all work together to create leadership pipelines capable of sustaining long-term organizational success.

Representation Makes Leadership Feel Possible

While systems and processes matter, Aida Figuerola, Neuropsychologist at Lift, reminds leaders that leadership development is also deeply human. Even the most thoughtfully designed pipeline can fall short if employees never see people like themselves succeeding within it.

Figuerola approaches the conversation from a neuroscience perspective, explaining that organizations often focus too heavily on preparing individuals instead of examining the environments surrounding them.

“The best practice isn’t a quota,” she says. “It’s a mirror.”

She observes that organizations frequently respond to leadership gaps by investing in additional training, mentoring and development for underrepresented employees while overlooking a more fundamental issue.

“We keep trying to fix the pipeline by changing the people coming through it,” Figuerola says. “That’s the wrong end of the problem.”

Instead, she encourages leaders to recognize the powerful role visible representation plays in shaping aspirations.

“People don’t aspire to what they can’t see,” she says. “A woman, a neurodivergent mind or someone from a background no one in the room shares—they’re not less ambitious. They just have no proof it’s possible for them.”

That insight reflects decades of neuroscience research showing that people develop stronger confidence and broader career aspirations when they can identify with successful role models.

“You can’t be what you can’t see,” Figuerola says.

Rather than launching another leadership initiative, she recommends making successful leaders more visible and accessible throughout the organization.

“The most powerful move for a diverse pipeline isn’t another program,” she says. “It’s more role models already at the top—visible, reachable and ordinary enough to be believed.”

Her final observation serves as a fitting close to the Think Tank’s collective recommendations.

“One person who made it rewrites what an entire group believes about themselves,” Figuerola says. “That’s not soft. That’s how the brain decides what’s possible.”

The insight brings the discussion full circle. Strong leadership pipelines are ultimately built through intentional systems, but those systems become even more powerful when employees can clearly envision themselves succeeding within them.

Strengthen Your Leadership Pipeline Today

• Redesign leadership systems before measuring outcomes. Examine policies, processes and promotion pathways to ensure they create equitable opportunities from the very beginning.
• Create leadership opportunities every day. Stretch assignments, meaningful feedback and executive sponsorship often reveal future leaders long before formal succession planning begins.
• Evaluate potential instead of pedigree. Assess leadership capability through demonstrated skills, judgment and adaptability rather than titles, tenure or résumés.
• Look farther across the organization for emerging talent. Regular talent reviews should identify employees who could be ready in the next one to two years, not only those prepared for immediate promotion.
• Hold leaders accountable for developing people. Leadership development should be measured alongside business performance through clear expectations and meaningful metrics.
• Embed inclusion throughout the talent lifecycle. Recruitment, development, promotion and retention should reinforce one another through transparent, measurable practices.
• Make leadership visible. Employees are more likely to pursue leadership when they can see successful role models whose experiences resemble their own.

The Strongest Pipelines Are Built By Design

Developing more diverse and inclusive leadership pipelines requires more than good intentions or isolated programs. As members of the Senior Executive HR Think Tank make clear, sustainable progress comes from redesigning the systems that identify, develop and support future leaders. When organizations expand opportunity, evaluate potential fairly and create meaningful pathways for growth, diversity becomes a natural outcome rather than a standalone objective.

For executives, the challenge is no longer whether leadership pipelines should become more inclusive, but whether existing talent systems consistently produce the leadership teams organizations need for the future. Organizations don’t build stronger leadership pipelines by searching harder for talent. They build them by creating systems where more talent has the opportunity to be seen, developed and trusted to lead.