The importance of internal mobility in a dynamic company culture

The importance of internal mobility in a dynamic company culture

The labor market is under pressure. Vacancies remain open for months, while employees leave because they see no growth prospects. At the same time, many organizations have a wealth of talent that isn’t being optimally utilized. Internal mobility offers a way out of this paradox, but only if it’s well organized. In Europe, only 43% of employees are aware of internal opportunities within their own organization. The result? Talented people leave for competitors, while they might have found their dream job internally. For organizations that want to remain agile and respond quickly to changes, this is a missed opportunity.

Why internal mobility is crucial for organizational agility

Dynamic company cultures require employees who can look beyond their own department. When people gain experience in different roles and teams, something valuable emerges: they understand how the organization really works. They see connections that others miss and can pivot faster when the market changes. This isn’t a soft skill, but a measurable advantage. Organizations that structurally invest in internal mobility fill an average of 50% of their vacancies internally, compared to less than 20% at companies without a mobility policy. This not only saves on recruitment costs, but also on onboarding time. An internal candidate already knows the culture, the systems, and often the stakeholders too. Even more important is the impact on innovation. Employees who switch roles bring cross-functional insights that break down traditional silos. They ask questions that colleagues with years of experience in the same function no longer ask. This fresh perspective leads to better processes, new products, and faster adaptation to market changes.

The biggest obstacles and how to overcome them

Despite the benefits, many organizations struggle with the practical implementation of internal mobility. The biggest obstacle? Managers who don’t want to let their best people go. European research shows that 40% of managers actively block internal mobility, fearing their team will perform less well. This is an understandable but short-sighted reflex. When managers are evaluated on their own team KPIs, it’s logical that they hold onto talent. The solution lies in a different way of steering and rewarding. Successful organizations link part of the management bonus to organization-wide goals, including the percentage of internally filled vacancies. A second effective approach is appointing a central mobility leader, someone who facilitates moves and helps managers with the transition. This role functions as a buffer and ensures that individual departments aren’t punished for developing talent that’s needed elsewhere in the organization. Additionally, transparency helps. When all vacancies are internally visible and employees can apply without permission from their current manager, a healthy dynamic emerges. This does require clear agreements about notice periods and handovers, so teams aren’t suddenly left without people.

Skills-matching makes the difference

The time when internal mobility revolved around an employee’s CV and network is over. Modern organizations use skills-based platforms that match talents based on what people can and want to learn, not just what they’ve done in the past. This approach yields surprising matches. A financial analyst with strong data skills, for example, turns out to be an excellent candidate for a business intelligence role. An HR advisor with project management experience can grow into a change management function. Without a system that makes these hidden talents visible, these opportunities remain untapped. In practice, this works as follows: employees fill in their skills profile, including competencies they want to develop. When a vacancy arises, the system matches not only on current skills but also on learning potential. This enormously expands the pool of suitable candidates and prevents organizations from turning to external candidates too quickly. A European logistics company doubled its percentage of internally filled vacancies to 48% by implementing such a platform. Managers received dashboards that showed which skills were available in the organization, leading to better decisions about recruitment and development.

From theory to practice: how to start

Implementing an effective mobility program requires a phased approach. Start with a pilot where you test the key mechanisms before rolling it out to the entire organization. Begin by mapping your current situation. How many vacancies are currently filled internally? How many employees have switched roles in the past two years? What are the main reasons why people leave? This baseline gives you concrete goals to work toward. Then ensure visibility of opportunities. Publish all vacancies internally before recruiting externally, preferably with a two-week head start. Make the application process low-threshold, without employees first needing permission from their manager. Communicate weekly about new opportunities via channels people actually use, such as Teams or the intranet homepage. Also introduce regular career conversations, separate from the performance review. These conversations aren’t about performance, but about ambitions and development. Train managers to conduct these conversations without immediately wanting to offer solutions. Often employees don’t know exactly what they want themselves, and that exploration requires time and space.

The role of data and technology

Deepler’s platform offers organizations the ability to gain insight into employees’ ambitions and development wishes through short, two-minute surveys. You can link this data to your talent marketplace, allowing you to proactively match people with new opportunities. By measuring quarterly how employees view their development, you spot trends early. Do you see a decline in growth prospects in a particular team? Then you can intervene before people leave. Do you see an increase in engagement after internal moves? Then you have proof that your program works. Modern mobility platforms also support short-term projects and gigs, alongside permanent role changes. This lowers the threshold for both employees and managers. A three-month rotation feels less definitive than a complete transfer, but still offers the opportunity to develop new skills and get to know another part of the organization.

The business case: what does it deliver? the financial benefits of internal mobility are substantial. external recruitment costs an average of between €5,000 and €15,000 per vacancy, depending on the level. internal placement costs a fraction of that. for an organization of 500 employees with an annual turnover of 15% and a percentage of internally filled vacancies of 50%, this quickly saves several hundred thousand euros per year. but the real value lies in retention and productivity. employees who grow internally stay with the organization an average of 17% longer. they’re productive faster in their new role because they already know the organization. and they function as role models for colleagues, which increases engagement throughout the entire organization. in sectors with large skills gaps, such as tech and healthcare, internal mobility also prevents forced layoffs during reorganizations. by redeploying employees based on transferable skills, you retain knowledge and avoid the social and financial costs of redundancies.

Make internal mobility part of your culture

Internal mobility isn’t an HR program you add on. It’s a fundamental part of how you deal with talent and change as an organization. This requires commitment from the management team and structural attention, not just during reorganizations or when vacancies are hard to fill. Start this week with a concrete first step: map out how many of your current vacancies could also have been filled internally. Discuss with your management team how you can give internal candidates more opportunity. And start the conversation with employees about their ambitions, without immediately promising solutions. The organizations that will make the difference in the future aren’t those with the largest recruitment budget, but those who optimally utilize and develop the talent they already have in-house.