The Two Sides of Talent Development: Why Knowledge Isn’t Enough
Most companies approach talent development in a very one-sided way. They focus heavily on horizontal development—the acquisition of knowledge and skills through books, courses, training modules, and workshops. This kind of development is easy to measure (“Did the employee complete the course? Yes or no.”) and easy to budget for.
But horizontal development has a serious limitation: knowledge alone rarely changes behavior. Reading a book won’t necessarily alter how someone leads a team. A workshop won’t automatically shift how someone handles conflict. Training can provide new tools, but without the capacity to apply them—knowing when, why, and how—they often go unused.
That’s where vertical development comes in. Vertical development focuses on mindset, perspective, and behavioral capacity. It is about how people think and act, not just what they know. Without it, even the best training initiatives fail to produce meaningful change.
The Problem with Over-Investing in Horizontal Development
Companies typically spend hundreds or even thousands per employee each year on training programs. But follow-up is often nonexistent. I’ve experienced this firsthand: I’ve gone through multiple certifications and training modules without any support in applying what I learned. Likewise, I’ve delivered training sessions myself, only to see the company fail to provide resources for reinforcement.
The result? Wasted investment. Employees gain knowledge but don’t change behavior. Performance at the individual, team, and organizational level stagnates.
Why does this keep happening?
Horizontal development is easy to track (courses completed, certifications obtained).
Vertical development is harder to measure, requires more resources, and demands genuine openness to change.
Many organizations are resistant to change—even when there is a clear return on investment—because of politics, inertia, or fear of disruption.
A Tale of Two Examples
A success story: Clean Code.
In one project, we trained engineers on the principles of writing clean, maintainable code. But this time, we ensured accountability and created a community of practice. Engineers supported each other, reinforced the behaviors, and sustained the practices. As a result, we reduced technical debt, avoided costly rework, and saved significant time across the project lifecycle.
A failure story: Agile Training.
In contrast, many companies invest in Scrum certifications—Scrum Master, Product Owner, etc.—without any vertical development or follow-up. Employees learn the rules but quickly fall back into old habits because the underlying behaviors never shift. Without strong agile coaches (who are often undervalued, misunderstood, or under-resourced), these initiatives collapse. What could have been a transformation becomes wasted time, frustration, and political infighting.
Why This Matters for Transformation
True business transformation requires different outcomes than what the company currently achieves. Unless external conditions force the change, internal conditions must evolve. That almost always means behavioral change.
This is why vertical development is the crux of organizational progress. Without it, companies keep repeating the same patterns: investing in horizontal training, checking the box, but never realizing the real value—lasting behavioral change that drives performance and transformation.