Recognizing and Engaging Employees For Dummies

Chapter 17

Engaging and Retaining High-Potential Employees

In This Chapter

Identifying the three key attributes of high-potential employees (HIPOs)

Discovering six strategies for better engagement of high-potential employees

Realizing the importance of mentoring to high-potential employees

Organizations invest millions of dollars to identify and develop high-potential employees (also known as “high potentials,” or “HIPOs”) within their workforce. Executives and managers often peg this cream-of-the-crop top talent for leadership roles early on in their careers. HIPOs are also usually the first to participate in innovative leadership development programs. Despite the considerable amount of time and effort companies put into guiding them, however, studies show that many High Potentials remain unengaged in their work and continue to actively pursue other opportunities.

In recent years, as many as 30 percent of HIPOs have left their organizations, a number that is expected to increase as the economy further improves. Over 50 percent of executives feel their organizations are ineffective at managing and keeping top talent, and 90 percent of CEOs rank a retention plan for the organization’s ...