What is a talent strategy assessment?

A talent strategy assessment, sometimes referred to as "talent mapping," is a comprehensive, data-driven evaluation of your workforce designed to identify alignment gaps between your people, their roles, and your business strategy. At Lever Talent, we use behavioral and cognitive assessments combined with organizational analysis to build a complete picture. The output is a prioritized roadmap that tells you exactly where to invest in development, hiring, and restructuring. It's the foundation for every people decision you'll make over the next 12 months.

How long does a talent strategy assessment take?

A typical talent strategy assessment takes 4-6 weeks from kickoff to final presentation, depending on organization size and complexity. For PE portfolio companies or urgent situations, we offer an accelerated 2-3 week timeline focused on senior leadership. The process includes assessment deployment, data analysis, stakeholder interviews, and an executive briefing session. We work around your team's schedule to minimize disruption.

What's the difference between a talent assessment and a talent strategy assessment?

A standard talent assessment evaluates individuals — their behavioral profile and cognitive ability. A talent strategy assessment goes further: it evaluates your entire workforce in the context of your business goals, their knowledge/skills/abilities, team structures, and growth plan. Lever Talent connects individual assessment data to organizational strategy, so you're not just profiling people — you're building a talent roadmap. The strategic layer is what makes the data actionable.

How much does a talent strategy assessment cost?

Pricing depends on the size of your organization and scope of the assessment. Most engagements for companies between 50-500 employees fall in the $15,000-$75,000 range. Lever Talent provides a detailed scope and investment proposal after an initial strategy session, so you know exactly what's included. We also offer phased approaches that let you start with leadership and expand to the full organization over time.

Do we need to assess every employee?

Not necessarily. Many clients start with a leadership-focused talent strategy assessment covering the top 2-3 layers of the organization, then expand based on findings. Lever Talent recommends assessing at least your leadership team and any teams experiencing performance or retention challenges. The right scope depends on your goals — a PE due diligence assessment looks different from a full-company culture diagnostic. We'll recommend the right approach during your strategy session.

What tools do you use in the talent strategy assessment?

Lever Talent works with tools like The Predictive Index, DiSC, and Principles as the foundation of our talent strategy assessment. We supplement behavioral data with structured interviews, team dynamics analysis, and organizational design review. For larger engagements, we may also incorporate engagement survey data, performance metrics, and 360-degree feedback. The combination of validated psychometric data and consulting expertise is what makes the assessment actionable.

What happens after the assessment is complete?

You receive a comprehensive diagnostic report, a prioritized talent strategy roadmap, and an executive briefing session with your leadership team. From there, Lever Talent can partner with you to implement recommendations — whether that's leadership development, team restructuring, hiring strategy, or ongoing talent reviews. Many clients move into our leadership assessment and development programs or employee engagement survey work based on assessment findings. The assessment is designed to be a launchpad, not a dead end.

Is this just for large companies?

No. We work with companies from 50 to 5,000+ employees. In fact, the talent strategy assessment is especially valuable for scaling companies in the 50-500 range, where every hire and promotion has outsized impact. Lever Talent tailors the scope and depth to match your stage and budget. A 75-person company gets a focused, high-impact assessment — not a watered-down version of an enterprise engagement.

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Our Passion for Talent Strategy Runs Deep, and it Shows

Your people are your biggest investment — and your biggest blind spot. Lever Talent's talent strategy assessment gives you a data-driven diagnostic of your workforce, revealing the gaps between where you are and where you need to be.

Currently serving hundreds of satisfied clients (and counting!) of all sizes and industries, you can trust us to align your talent to your business strategy and maximize the leverage of your biggest investment.

Step 1: Map Your Talent Landscape

We start with a comprehensive talent audit — reviewing your org chart, role requirements, team dynamics, and business objectives. Using behavioral and cognitive assessments and customized self- and manager appraisals, we map every individual against the demands of their role.

Step 2: Evaluate Alignment & Gaps

Our consultants analyze the data to identify misalignments between people, roles, and strategy. We look at leadership bench strength, team cohesion, engagement risk, and succession readiness — all through a data lens, not gut feel.

Step 3: Design Your Talent Strategy Roadmap

You receive a prioritized roadmap with specific recommendations: who to develop, where to hire, which teams need intervention, and what leadership capabilities to build. Every recommendation ties back to your business goals.

Step 4: Launch & Measure

We don't just hand you a report and disappear. Lever Talent partners with you to launch priority initiatives — whether that's a leadership development program, a restructured team, or a targeted hiring plan — and we track progress with quarterly talent reviews.

1: Behavioral & Cognitive Assessments

Complete PI assessments for every team member to map your organization's behavioral DNA, revealing natural drives, communication styles, and cognitive agility.

2: Talent Strategy Diagnostic Report

A detailed report on alignment, leadership, and team dynamics. This becomes your single source of truth for people decisions and role-fit scores.

3: Talent Strategy Roadmap

A prioritized 12-month roadmap with specific actions for hiring, development, and succession. We organize recommendations by impact and urgency to guide your strategy.

4: Executive Briefing Session

A 90-minute leadership session to review findings and align on next steps. We pressure-test recommendations to ensure your data translates into decisive action.

5: Team Dynamics Analysis

Detailed team work style reports reveal collaboration patterns and friction points. Managers receive actionable coaching insights and communication recommendations.

6: Quarterly Talent Review Framework

An HR-ready framework with templates and scoring guides to turn talent reviews into a repeatable, living process rather than a one-time event.

CEOs & Founders Scaling Past 50 Employees

You built the team on instinct. Now you need a system. A talent strategy assessment gives you the data to make confident people decisions as complexity increases.

PE-Backed Portfolio Companies Post-Acquisition

New ownership means new expectations. Our assessment gives PE operating partners and portfolio CEOs a rapid talent diagnostic: who's a keeper and who needs development.

CHROs Preparing for Board-Level Talent Reviews

You need to present a credible, data-backed talent picture to the board. Our assessment gives you the framework, the data, and the narrative — not just spreadsheets.

Companies Experiencing High Turnover or Engagement Drops

Something's off, but you can't pinpoint it. A talent strategy assessment identifies the root causes — whether it's role misalignment, leadership gaps, broken team dynamics, or cultural misalignment.

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Stop Guessing About Your People

The most-leveraged talent wins — but only if you know what you're working with. A talent strategy assessment gives you the data, the roadmap, and the confidence to make your next people decision the right one.

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