ClearRock

BOSTON - The financial services industry wants their senior-level executives to sharpen their team-building skills more than other capabilities, while the pharmaceutical/biotech and health care industries say their top-level executives most need to improve their leadership abilities, according to a survey by ClearRock, an outplacement and executive coaching firm headquartered in Boston.

"Financial services is one of the industries that has been affected most by the recession, and has made among the deepest workforce cutbacks. Financial services companies want their top executives to be able to pull together those who have survived the layoffs and downsizings, motivate them, and move them forward by building teamwork," said Annie Stevens, managing partner for ClearRock (http://www.clearrock.com/).

High-potential employees in the financial services and healthcare industries most need to improve their strategic thinking abilities, while pharmaceutical/biotech companies want their high-potentials to sharpen their leadership skills.

According to the ClearRock survey of more than 100 organizations with operations throughout the U.S.:

• The top three skills that financial services senior-level executives need to improve are team-building, leadership, and strategic thinking.
• Pharmaceutical/biotech senior-level executives need to sharpen their leadership, communications, and vision skills.
• Healthcare industry senior-level executives should work on their leadership, communications, and employee engagement skills.
• The top three skills that high-potential employees in the financial services industry need to improve are strategic thinking, leadership, and team-building.
• Pharmaceutical/biotech high-potentials must improve their leadership, communications, and teamwork skills.
• High-potentials in the healthcare industry need to sharpen their strategic thinking, leadership, and motivation skills.

"The financial services and healthcare industries want their high-potentials to most work on their strategic thinking skills. Both industries want high-potentials to be able to analyze changing business conditions, be aware of latest trends in their fields and what their competitors are doing, and to uncover opportunities for creating value. This is a process they can develop while still in the development stage themselves as they mature into future leaders," said Greg Gostanian, managing partner with ClearRock.