Talent development at Shell does not begin with a training catalogue or the question ‘when will I be promoted?’. It begins with a leader who can see a person’s potential, understand their readiness and create the conditions for real progress. Sabina Chomicka, HR Operations Director and Executive Coach, brought this perspective together in three simple but demanding leadership lessons.
This case study is based on a public talk by Sabina Chomicka of Shell. It describes an approach to the leader’s role and people’s development. It contains no confidential data, internal indicators or unpublished business results.
Talent development at Shell: the leadership context
In a large, complex organisation, employee development cannot be solely HR’s responsibility. It is an everyday management practice: talking about ambitions, observing strengths, delegating responsibility and removing obstacles that block progress. In its official description, Shell emphasises that people help shape the organisation’s culture and that its core values include honesty, integrity and respect for people. This provides useful context for Sabina’s question: what is a leader’s role, really?
Employees understand development differently
One of the strongest elements of the talk was the employee’s perspective. The shared term ‘development’ can conceal very different expectations:
- ‘When will I be promoted?’ — development understood as the next step on the career ladder.
- ‘What is your plan for me?’ — expecting the manager to design the employee’s future.
- ‘What can I learn?’ — curiosity about new tasks, skills and experiences.
- ‘Thanks, I’ll sit this one out’ — not being ready for change at that particular moment.
- ‘I have an idea!’ — a need for autonomy and space to act independently.
One programme, one pathway and one way of conducting a conversation will therefore not work for everyone. The leader needs a diagnosis: what this person wants, what the business needs and which step both sides are ready to take today.
Lesson 1: do not force development
Development cannot be imposed effectively. A leader can invite an employee to learn, show opportunities, provide feedback and create a safe space to try new things. They cannot, however, do another person’s development work for them.
‘Do not force it’ does not mean abandoning expectations. It means distinguishing between three situations: a lack of skills, a lack of the right conditions and a lack of readiness. Each requires a different leadership response. Training helps when the problem is a skill. Removing a barrier helps when the system blocks the employee. An honest conversation is needed when organisational goals and a person’s aspirations no longer meet.
Questions to open a development conversation
- What would you like to do more often because it gives you energy and a sense of influence?
- What responsibility would you like to try over the coming weeks?
- What is making progress most difficult for you today?
- What support do you need from me as your leader?
- How will we recognise together that development has happened?
Lesson 2: invest in talent thoughtfully
The most independent people can easily become invisible to their manager. Since ‘they will manage’, they receive less attention, less frequent feedback and fewer conversations about the future. At the same time, they are often given more and more tasks because they are reliable. In this way, recognition of talent can quietly turn into overload.
| What the leader sees | Risk for the employee | A better practice |
|---|---|---|
| ‘They will manage’ | No regular conversations or feedback | Maintain a rhythm of development meetings |
| ‘They can take on more’ | More work without more influence | Connect new tasks with decision-making authority |
| ‘They do not need supervision’ | Invisible overload or stagnation | Ask about energy, ambitions and barriers |
| ‘They are ready for promotion’ | A pathway imposed without checking motivation | Agree the direction with the employee |
Talent development: energy versus progress
Sabina used a clear metaphor: a person can put enormous energy into moving a boulder and still remain in the same place. At work, this happens when development means more tasks, additional projects and greater pressure but brings no new skills, agency or visible movement in the chosen direction.
The leader’s role is therefore not just to motivate greater effort. Leaders should help choose a direction, match the challenge to the employee’s capabilities and remove organisational barriers. Sometimes the most important intervention is not new training but a clear priority, access to information, a timely decision or protecting the team from too many parallel initiatives.
Lesson 3: develop strengths
The third lesson shifts attention from constantly fixing shortcomings to deliberately using what an employee does best. This does not mean ignoring skill gaps. It means allocating investment sensibly: critical gaps must be closed, but a person’s and a team’s advantage usually grows where natural abilities meet practice, feedback and responsibility.
In the material, Sabina refers to Gallup’s approach and strengths-based work. This case study does not repeat the percentages shown on the slide because the material itself does not identify the full research source. It retains the practical conclusion: a conversation about talents makes sense only when it leads to a better way of working on real tasks.
What is the leader’s role in employee development?
Six specific responsibilities emerge from the presentation. A good leader:
- recognises readiness — does not assume that everyone wants to develop in the same way and at the same pace;
- holds regular conversations — does not limit development to an annual review;
- recognises strengths — names them and helps translate them into value for the team;
- offers challenges rather than just extra work — a new task should bring learning, influence or responsibility;
- removes obstacles — ensures clear priorities, access to information and the authority to make decisions;
- checks progress — follows up on agreements and helps draw lessons from experience.
Leadership understood this way is part of building organisational capability. It connects with the approach described in the LeanTrix Transformation Loop model: people’s development, management practices and daily processes must reinforce one another. See also our work on effective leadership and leader development and organisational culture.
How can these lessons be put into practice?
- Define development more broadly than promotion. Include new skills, experiences, responsibility, influence and lateral mobility.
- Set a minimum rhythm for conversations. A short development meeting once a month is more valuable than a long conversation once a year.
- Separate tasks from development experiments. Explain what the employee is expected to learn and how much freedom they have.
- Monitor how leaders distribute their attention. Check whether the best employees are receiving only more tasks.
- Use strengths at work. Talents should be visible in role allocation, projects and decisions, rather than just in an assessment report.
- Measure progress through behaviour and results. A change in the way someone works matters; attendance at training alone does not.
What does this case study demonstrate, and what does it not establish?
The material documents three principles recommended by Sabina Chomicka: development should not be forced, investing in talent requires deliberate leadership decisions, and strengths should be put into practice. It also shows a typical risk concerning the strongest employees: they may receive more work while getting less attention to their development.
The presentation contains no data establishing the programme’s scale, budget, participant numbers, schedule or impact on Shell’s performance. These elements are therefore not presented as implementation results. This is a deliberate choice: a valuable case study can teach a way of thinking without disclosing confidential information or inventing unconfirmed figures.
Frequently asked questions about talent development at Shell
What does talent development mean in this case study?
Matching actions to the employee’s readiness, holding regular conversations, using strengths, offering developmental challenges and removing barriers that hinder progress.
Should every employee have a promotion plan?
No. Development can mean broadening skills, taking project responsibility, deepening a specialism or changing the way someone works. Promotion is only one possible pathway.
How can leaders avoid overloading their best employees?
By not equating potential with unlimited availability. Each new task should be linked to a clear development goal, appropriate decision-making authority and a conversation about workload.
Does working with strengths mean ignoring weaknesses?
No. Gaps critical to safety, quality or the role must be addressed. At the same time, the greatest value is usually built by deliberately developing and using strengths.
How can employee development be measured?
Through observable change: greater independence, better decisions, new behaviours, the ability to teach others or a result achieved through a new skill. Attending training alone is not yet a result.
About the case study author
Sabina Chomicka is an HR Operations Director and Executive Coach. Her work focuses on talent development, deliberate leadership, conversations about employees’ futures and the practical use of strengths in organisations.
Source: Sabina Chomicka of Shell’s public talk at Lean TWI Summit 2026 in Wrocław and materials supplied to the organiser. Information about Shell was verified against the company’s official website. The featured image comes from Shell’s official website. This publication contains no confidential data and does not attribute unconfirmed results to the organisation.
Sabina Chomicka is an HR Operations Director and Executive Coach. Her work focuses on talent development, conscious leadership, conversations about employees' futures and the practical use of individual strengths within organizations.
