For J.B. Hunt's 340-strong IT team, Palmer created a three-part program to identify and train future IT leaders. Management aspirants are first identified through managers' recommendations, along with a battery of tests such as the Myers-Briggs personality test. "Really smart people aren't always the best decision-makers," she said, adding that introverts aren't always unsuitable for management positions.

Management trainees at J.B. Hunt are then assigned an industrial psychologist -- their "office linebacker coach" -- who assigns homework. The trainees also take classes and role-play management scenarios, often in front of actual managers. "When the senior leadership is watching, there is real risk and pressure," she said.

For Columbia, Md.-based TD Ameritrade, Bartlett paid out of his own budget for an 18-month management training program that involves a full day of training each month and pairing trainees up with mentors. "It's quite a commitment," he said.

One reason that technicians may need more management training than people in other professions is because of the very narrow scope of their jobs. "Our profession is made up of specialists, from graphic designers to network technicians," said Bill Regehr, senior vice-president of IT for the Boys and Girls Clubs of America, another member of the panel. "There's a shortage of people who can put together the whole thing."

Some IT organizations are too small to have formal training programs. Regehr oversees a team of only 25 people, despite the fact that the nonprofit Boys and Girls Clubs of America operates more than 3,700 facilities nationwide. "As a result, we were always pretty ramble-scramble," he said.