High-potential employees are more productive than the rest of your team. They’re dedicated and hardworking, going above and beyond without you even needing to ask.
With the right support, you can turn them into high performers. High performing team members are so valuable that they drive 400% more productivity and are 91% more valuable than the average employee. However, they’re prone to burnout and will leave if they feel unsupported.
So how do you spot your high-potential employees? And how do you support them?
How to identify high-potential employees
Your high-potential employees notice things your other employees don’t. They pay attention to business practices even when they don’t need to, considering how their actions — and those of their colleagues — will affect your business in the short- and long-term.
Because of this interest, they’re likely to ask questions about what’s going on so that they can understand what’s happening and why.
They have an ability to see the bigger picture and actively use it. This is an important skill to nurture, and one that many people who work for you won’t have, or won’t apply at work.
You therefore need to support your high-potential employees as much as possible, because if they feel supported, they’ll go above and beyond.
How to support high potential employees
Have a formal development program
Whether you’ve identified your high-potential employees yet or not, you need a formal development program in place.
That includes understanding:
- How someone progresses up the career ladder
- What training opportunities are available
- Details of coaching and mentoring
- Potential external mentors who may be able to help them
- Anything else that may be able to help someone grow
If someone with high potential joins you and finds that you don’t offer progression opportunities, they’re unlikely to stay when a better opportunity comes along — high performers are 15% more likely to leave if they’re not being actively developed.
Worse, only 18% of companies have a formal process for developing internal talent. 20% have nothing.
Provide them with training opportunities
Your high-potential employees are also at a higher risk of leaving if they feel unhappy or unsupported. They can be your biggest advocates and lead to the biggest internal transformations, and even motivate the rest of your team — so long as you offer them opportunities to progress.
For example, could you invest in training on how to use AI in their role? Skills they need for a promotion? Upskilling or reskilling opportunities? The list of ways to support them with training is endless.
Ask them what they want and where they want to go. They need to feel included in the plan and not like a passenger — a lack of agency is just as likely to nudge someone out the door.
Offer coaching or mentoring
A coach can support employees in growing new skills, while a mentor can help them develop within your organization or the wider industry.
Your employee groups are undervalued tools for connecting employees with internal coaches and mentors. It’s not easy to find someone, and as a result many people never do. Leaving them floundering.
You can set up a group where those who have space can offer coaching or mentoring, or those in need of it can ask for recommendations.
Workrowd can help you organize those groups, making your employees more likely to use them. Want to find out more? Get in touch to book a demo.
Include them in business decisions
Your high-potential employees know what’s going on in your business. Because of that, they will probably spot things those too close to a situation won’t.
Getting their opinions on business decisions means you get a unique perspective: they can sum up employee sentiment and understand why the C-Suite wants to make the decisions it does. So then they can help the two levels communicate, and if required, find a middle ground.
Bring them in on interviews
Interviews aren’t just about seeing if someone is a good fit for your business. They’re also an opportunity to sell your business as an employer. Who better to do that than an employee who’s excelling in their role?
Including high-potential employees in interviews also helps with their development. They get to know more about how the company operates outside of their department, and you get more people who can conduct interviews. Perfect if you’re a high-volume employer.
Pay them fairly (if not better)
The pay for many roles hasn’t changed in around a decade. That’s not how you attract or retain high performers.
High performers know what they’re worth, they know companies will compete for them, and they want to be paid accordingly.
If you’re not willing to pay the rates, as high-potential employees level up, they’ll leave to work for someone who’ll pay them more in line with what their time and hard work is worth.
Set up an employee group
High-potential employees often have different goals from other team members. Creating a group where they can share resources and ask for advice connects them and keeps them motivated. It can also mitigate burnout because they have a supportive community around them.
Like attracts like, and, as the old rule says, we’re a product of the five people we spend the most time with. If employees spend more time talking to other high-potential employees, it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. They support each other’s growth and progress.
Watch for burnout
Because high-potential employees work so hard, it’s painfully easy for them to burn out. You therefore need to support their physical and mental wellbeing. Their line manager and HR team play a key role in this. Things like:
- Making sure they go to lunch
- Reminding them they don’t have to start at 7am and finish at 10pm every day
- Encouraging them to use all their PTO
While rollover PTO policies can be nice, sometimes they discourage employees from taking their leave because they know they won’t lose those days. Especially if said employee feels like they have too much to do, or just want to get one more thing over the line before they can relax.
If someone feels too busy to take PTO, it’s a sign they could be overworked. Step in and remind them that the business’s success doesn’t rest on their shoulders: it should be a team effort.
Conclusion
Your high-potential employees could become your biggest asset. So long as you support them.
To do that, you need to include them in business decisions and provide growth opportunities throughout their tenure. The more they feel supported and included, and like they have opportunities for progression, the more likely they are to stick around.
