Dr. Celina Peerman urges employers to build leadership pipelines now

As back-to-school season returns, organizational psychologist Dr. Celina Peerman says employers should treat it as a reminder to keep developing future leaders before openings appear. She is urging organizations to prepare first-time managers and succession plans now for 2027 and beyond.

Why it matters: - Organizations that wait until a leadership gap opens may be too late to prepare the next manager. - Peerman says leadership readiness is becoming more important as workplaces face new technology, shifting employee expectations and ongoing change. - The issue affects both first-time supervisors and the broader succession pipeline.

What happened: - Organizational psychologist and leadership strategist Dr. Celina Peerman said back-to-school season should prompt employers to think about continued learning for leaders, not just students. - Peerman said the strongest leaders stay curious, keep building skills and recognize that past success may not be enough for future roles. - She argued that organizations often promote strong individual contributors into people-leadership roles without enough preparation. - Peerman said employers should begin developing potential leaders before positions become available. - She outlined five questions organizations should ask during fall planning to strengthen leadership readiness for 2027 and beyond.

The details: - Leading people requires skills that differ from technical performance, including communication, coaching, accountability, decision-making, relationship building and managing change. - Peerman said a promotion changes a title, but does not automatically give someone the confidence or skills to lead people. - She said new people leaders need support, and trial and error should not be the only development strategy. - Her five questions ask who is being developed before promotion, what support first-time supervisors receive, when experienced leaders last invested in their own development, what leaders will need to know in two to three years, and who would step up if a key leader left suddenly. - Peerman said leadership development should come through mentoring, facilitated learning, stretch assignments, coaching, peer discussions, reflection, feedback and chances to practice new skills. - She said development must continue throughout a leader’s career, not stop after one class or a move into senior leadership. - Peerman said leaders must keep learning to navigate technology, changing employee expectations, complex workplaces, knowledge transfer and constant change. - Peerman is an organizational psychologist, leadership strategist, professional speaker and author with more than 30 years of experience in human resources, operations and leadership education. - Through The Peerman Group, Peerman and her team work with organizations on leadership, teams and workplace change. - Peerman is a four-time author, two-time TEDx speaker and Certified Speaking Professional. - Peerman is available for media interviews and expert commentary on leadership development, first-time manager readiness, succession, leadership pipelines, changing workplace expectations and the future of work. - The press release says Peerman first explored the topic in a guest article published by Waverly Newspapers in Waverly, Iowa. - Contact information listed in the release includes Celina Peerman of The Peerman Group, +1 319-240-8882, and social media links for LinkedIn and YouTube.

Between the lines: - Peerman is framing leadership development as a long-term workforce strategy, not a training perk. - The message suggests organizations may be underinvesting in early-career and midcareer leadership preparation. - Her emphasis on 2027 signals that succession planning should start well before a vacancy or retirement forces a response.

What's next: - Peerman is urging employers to use 2026 planning cycles to identify future leaders now. - Organizations that want stronger benches will need to create regular learning opportunities, not rely on promotions as the main development tool. - The release positions leadership readiness as an ongoing responsibility heading into 2027 and beyond.

The bottom line: - Peerman’s core message is simple: future leaders are already inside the organization, and employers need to start preparing them before they are needed.