High-Potential Employees

High-potential employees display three key qualities:

1. Ability: High-potential employees consistently show their ability to complete tasks at their level or above by outperforming peers in measurable ways, working efficiently during their work hours, and taking initiative on projects.
2. Aspiration: High-potential employees show a desire to learn more and perform at a higher level. They also ask for feedback and express interest in new roles and continued learning opportunities.
3. Engagement: High-potential employees are engaged, meaning they care about the organization and the industry. Their passion drives them to be focused and engaged in the workplace.

How to Find High-Potential Employees in Your Organization

There are a number of different strategies and ways that you can use to uncover high-potential employees because it may not always be obvious. Some of these strategies include 360 feedback surveys – what are their peers, direct reports, and supervisors saying about them? Another way is through behavioral interviews. During these interviews, you can get a good feeling for an employee’s aptitude, engagement level, and work-related behaviors. And, of course, assessments, questionnaires, and other tests are a good indicator of high potential – they give you something measurable.

How to Refine High-Potential

Once you’ve found the employees who display high potential, the work has just begun. Continuing to refine the employee’s skills is just as important as the raw potential. You can refine high-potential employees’ skills by identifying what skills gaps they have, and then developing mentorship and learning opportunities that will help them grow. When you continue to help these high-potential employees grow, their value to the company increases, and their career path expands.

Infographic

Let this infographic be your guide when finding and developing high-potential employees. You can also download it to have on hand.