When Kimberly Mosby was asked to participate in the second cohort of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (HMH)’s job rotation program, LEAD (leadership, engagement and development) Connected, she wasn’t immediately sold on the idea. Mosby had been working at the K-12 learning technology company and publisher since 2009, and she was happy in her role as senior product manager for English 3D, HMH’s solution for multilingual learners. Although it was “an amazing honor” to be nominated for the program by a member of the senior leadership team, she “thought long and hard” about whether it was the right move for her career development. In the end, she decided that it was.

“What I realized was that this was an amazing opportunity to learn the business from a 360-degree angle,” Mosby says. It was a chance to gain knowledge and exposure to “bits and pieces and corners” of the industry.

After completing her first rotation on HMH’s capability development and operations team, during which she helped set up the company’s first equity and inclusion office, Mosby is now beginning her second rotation on HMH’s product management and strategy team. The program has not only helped her learn new skills, but also to “shine company wide,” she says.

Let’s take a closer look at how LEAD Connected, which launched in 2021, is working to support both employees’ career development and key business goals.

Key Objectives

LEAD Connected was initially launched in effort to create a diverse — and highly skilled — internal leadership pipeline. HMH believed that a job rotation program, in which high-potential (HiPo) employees could “rotate” through different business functions, would “break down silos” across departments and develop well-rounded future leaders, says Alejandro Reyes, chief people officer at HMH.

Although many companies take a linear approach to employee development, HMH recognized that the most successful leaders have experience across the company — not just “up” the traditional career ladder. And by selecting employees from underrepresented groups to participate in the rotation program, it would also support the company’s diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts.

In addition, implementing a job rotation program would help HMH retain HiPo employees, giving them the chance to learn new skills and advance their careers — in house.

Getting Started and Gaining Support

Based on the objectives outlined above, HMH designed an 18-month program consisting of three, six-month job rotations. Around 10 employees could be “nominated” by executive leaders to participate in the program on a yearly basis, based on factors such as:

• Their performance: Program participants must be considered “high performing” for at least two years. Leaders are encouraged to nominate employees who they believe are ready for a challenge or for the “next step” in their career.
• Their experience: Employees with 6-10 years of experience post-college is the “sweet spot” for program participation, Reyes says.
• Their background: Leaders are encouraged to nominate employees from a variety of backgrounds and demographics, specifically considering women and people of color, who have historically had less access to opportunities for career development and advancement.

After leaders make their nominations, candidates participate in a “learning agility interview.” This helps HMH gauge their ability to adapt to new challenges and take on new roles and responsibilities, which is critical to learners’ success in the program. The leadership team then considers each candidate’s performance and then selects the final cohort of learners.

Although participation is optional, HMH invited all business functions to opt into the rotation program. Most of HMH’s larger departments (e.g., sales, marketing, operations, finance, etc.) agreed. However, many team leaders were hesitant at first — and rightfully so: Participating in LEAD Connected meant losing their “superstar” employees, who would report to human resources (HR) for the duration of the program. Reyes says that the goal wasn’t to have learners go back to their original roles, or even departments, after graduation. Instead, graduates would enter a “talent marketplace,” and any business leader of a department they rotated through could make them a job offer. Some graduates, he says, may even end up with competing offers from different departments.

To get team leaders on board, Reyes and his team had to facilitate somewhat of a mindset shift so that leaders viewed talent as a company asset rather than a departmental one. This meant reiterating the fact that offering career growth opportunities is in the best interest of the company’s long-term success, even if it causes short-term challenges for teams losing a high-performing employee.

In addition to getting team leaders on board, Reyes and his team also had to gain executive buy-in to finance the program, which he says “isn’t un-expensive.” After all, launching the program meant that HMH would need to hire and train new employees to fill the former roles of LEAD Connected participants. Fortunately, Reyes says HMH’s executives quickly got on board, recognizing that LEAD Connected would help the company develop and retain top talent long-term. In other words, it was an investment worth making.

Gaining executive support and buy-in was a critical first step in getting LEAD Connected off the ground. The next step was to ensure that the program was designed in a way that would engage and motivate learners. In other words, “one-size-fits-all” approach wouldn’t cut it.

To create a personalized learning experience, Reyes says that HMH worked hard to create “intentional paths” for learners based on their unique interests. For instance, employees interested in learning more about the customer journey might rotate through the sales department, whereas employees interested in learning about how their digital products are made could rotate through the software development department.

Creating individual learning pathways would prove critical in setting learners — and the company — up for success by leveraging their strengths and interests across the business.

Current Progress and Next Steps

Since officially launching LEAD Connected in 2021, the first cohort of seven learners has graduated. Every learner has been promoted since graduation. The second cohort, which includes nine employees, recently finished their first six-month rotation and is on track for a January 2024 graduation. Reyes says that members of the LEAD Connected program’s first cohort produced “very high scores” on HMH’s annual engagement survey on the employee value proposition (EVP) index, which includes feeling invested, valued, cared for and successful.

Mosby says that, upon beginning her second rotation, “The team welcomed me with open arms and really set up a path for success.” In addition to learning new skills in areas like project management and strategic thinking in her first rotation, she continues to learn from her cohort of peers and from the previous cohort. “The alumni come back and share what they’ve learned now that they’re in their new roles,” she says. “It’s an amazing group that I’m in.”

Although Mosby had specific goals she hoped to achieve going into the program, such as building a robust network across the company and gaining exposure to different business functions, her goals continue to evolve as she’s realized that the opportunities for growth “are endless.” She’s excited to see where LEAD Connected takes her.

Final Takeaways

The benefits of launching a job rotation program are vast, but building one from the ground up can feel daunting. Consider these tips to help you get started:

• Get support: For a job rotation to be successful, support “has to come from the top,” Reyes says. This includes both gaining the buy-in you need to launch and sustain the program and gaining support from business leaders who may be weary about losing a top performer on their team. To gain this support, Reyes encourages training professionals to outline the business goals the program will support (i.e., retention, engagement, closing skills gaps, improving DEI, etc.) so that you can make the business case for the program.
• Make it inclusive: Encourage leaders to sponsor a diverse set of candidates so that employees from all backgrounds and demographics have the chance to advance their careers. It’s also important to ensure that all learners have equal access to mentors and coaches who can help them navigate challenges and make the most out of their learning experience.
• Customize it: The number and duration of your program’s job rotations will depend on your organization’s size and how many learners you’re planning to send through the program. Consult with stakeholders to determine the right size and timeframe for your program.

Ultimately, investing in employees’ long-term career development signals to top performers that they’re valued. It shows that the business is “walking the talk,” Reyes says, creating a culture that employees will want to be a part of for the long haul.