The Challenge
Succession decisions without real performance insight
A global engineering organisation operating across 20+ countries was reviewing succession at executive level. Despite heavy investment in established assessment tools, the outputs lacked practical value.
Reports were technically robust, but they failed to show:
- How leaders performed under pressure
- How they influenced others in complex environments
- Who was genuinely ready to step into more senior roles
The CEO wanted greater confidence. Not potential on paper, but evidence of leadership capability in real conditions.
The Deepsky Approach
From static assessment to observable leadership performance
Deepsky designed an experiential, data-led assessment programme focused on how leaders actually think, decide, and behave under pressure.
The engagement combined:
- Deep diagnostic conversations with the CEO and succession candidates
- Live observation of leadership behaviour in ambiguous, high-pressure scenarios
- One-to-one coaching focused on judgement, emotional regulation, and decision quality
- Ongoing reflection and learning embedded through Deepsky’s digital platform
Leadership readiness was assessed across emotional intelligence, influence, decision-making under stress, and executive presence, moving beyond static tools into observable performance.
To strengthen objectivity, Miramar’s CEO joined the engagement, adding a commercial, market-tested lens shaped by decades of senior leadership assessment and placement.
The Impact
Clarity, alignment, and confidence in succession decisions
The programme delivered a far clearer view of the organisation’s leadership bench:
- Genuine strengths surfaced early
- Several leaders were outperforming expectations
- Others had plateaued despite strong credentials
Crucially, insights were shared directly with the leaders involved creating ownership, focus, and clarity around development priorities.
Succession decisions were no longer driven by tenure, reputation, or intuition. They were grounded in evidence.
The organisation promoted Deepsky’s primary recommendation with confidence, supported by real performance data rather than assumption.
Why This Matters
Better data. Better judgement. Lower risk.
Succession planning fails when decisions are made without understanding how leaders perform under pressure.
This case demonstrates the value of combining experiential assessment, behavioural science, and trusted external perspective to:
- Reduce succession risk
- Improve decision quality
- Strengthen leadership pipelines
- Reinforce a culture that values capability over assumption
Clarity at this level doesn’t just enable better promotions, it builds confidence in leadership decisions.