Building a global career framework for NCR Professional Services

NCR Professional Services introduced a global career framework to create greater consistency in how people developed and progressed across the organisation. The programme established five career levels, moved progression from tenure to demonstrated capability, and aligned learning and leadership development directly to the skills required at each stage.

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Embedded into performance management, talent reviews and succession planning, the framework gave employees greater clarity around career progression while helping NCR strengthen succession pipelines, improve internal mobility and better align workforce capability with business strategy.

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The Challenge

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As NCR expanded globally, inconsistencies in role definitions, progression criteria and development pathways were creating challenges across Professional Services.

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Employees did not always have a clear view of what was expected at each career level or what they needed to demonstrate to progress. Promotion decisions were not always based on one consistent set of criteria, while development activity was not consistently connected to the capabilities the organisation needed.

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The challenge was not a lack of development activity. It was the absence of one framework connecting roles, capabilities, learning and progression.

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NCR needed a scalable and globally consistent approach that could strengthen workforce capability, improve transparency and fairness in progression, and support the development of a sustainable leadership pipeline

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The Approach

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A comprehensive career framework and leadership programme was developed and rolled out across Professional Services job families within NCR’s global 6,000-employee organisation.

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At the heart of the programme was a shift from tenure-based progression to competency-based advancement. The framework established five career levels:

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• Graduate

• Practitioner

• Lead

• Principal

• Executive

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For each level, the framework defined the scope of responsibility and accountability alongside the technical, commercial, client-facing and leadership capabilities required.

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Clear progression criteria were established between each level, with advancement based on demonstrated capability, completion of relevant development pathways and a structured assessment and validation process.

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Learning programmes were then mapped directly to the competencies required at each stage. These covered core standards aligned to NCR values and delivery excellence, technical and consulting capability, project and programme management, commercial and financial understanding, and leadership development from Graduate through to Executive level.

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This created a clearer connection between career progression and development, while allowing investment in learning to be targeted towards the capabilities and strategic skill gaps that mattered most to the organisation.

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The programme was deployed globally with sponsorship from NCR’s CEO and embedded into existing performance management, talent review and succession planning processes. Rather than operating as a standalone development initiative, the framework became part of the organisation’s wider approach to performance, progression and future leadership capability.

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The Impact

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The framework increased transparency and consistency around career progression, giving employees a clearer understanding of what was expected at each level and what they needed to demonstrate to move forward.

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Improved employee engagement was reported through pulse surveys, alongside stronger succession pipelines and greater internal mobility across service lines.

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The framework also helped create better alignment between workforce capability and business strategy, providing a more consistent way to identify development priorities and prepare people for future leadership responsibilities.

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The result was more than a new set of job levels. NCR Professional Services had a clearer structure connecting what the organisation needed, what was expected from its people and how employees could develop towards greater responsibility.

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If your organisation faces similar challenges around alignment, leadership or execution, get in touch with us to explore how we can help.

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Image credit: JJonahJackalope, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons