Canadian HR Reporter

Canadian HR RepoRteR november 3, 2014 news 3 'moving on up' not always an option Retaining high-potentials can be challenging when promotions aren't available By Liz Bernier HaVIng high-potential employ- ees in your leadership pipeline is a hot topic for HR professionals — but attracting and retaining them isn't as easy as it may sound. As the economy shows slow improvement, hiring activity be- gins to increase and turnover rates creep upward, many employers are experiencing difficulty finding — and keeping — high-potentials. Many employers simply don't have a strong understanding of why employees choose to stay with an organization, according to two surveys by Towers Watson that identified challenges around attracting and retaining employ- ees. But that understanding is critically important — especially when it comes to high-potentials. e Towers Watson Global Tal- ent Management and Rewards survey of 1,637 companies found there have been increases in hir- ing activity — 48 per cent of re- spondents said hiring activity has increased since last year. Howev- er, 64 per cent reported trouble at- tracting high-potential employees and 56 per cent reported difficulty retaining high-potentials. Many employers are simply missing the mark when it comes to career development, said San- dra McLellan, director of rewards, talent and communication at Towers Watson in Toronto. "at's on a couple of dimen- sions. One of them is in defining what career development means because it means different things to different people," she said. "For a number of people, it might mean 'When was the last time I got pro- moted?' But, increasingly — and particularly for high-potential employees — it's a question of 'Do I feel like I'm learning? Do I feel like my job today is different than it was yesterday? Am I feeling challenged?'" It's important to have the con- versation about what the indi- vidual employee's aspirations are, according to Deb LaMere, vice- president of HR strategy and em- ployee engagement at Ceridian in Minneapolis. "Once you have identified them (as a high-potential) and you've let them know… it's continually keeping them motivated and also talking to them about what their aspirations are," she said. "You may identify them as high-poten- tial, but what is it that they truly want to do and what are their ca- reer aspirations?" Greener pastures? ose conversations become even more important when managers consider that high-potentials are more likely to feel stuck, bored or "blocked" in their current posi- tions — which could potentially drive them into the arms of an- other company. The Towers Watson Global Workforce Study, which surveyed 32,000 employees, including more than 1,000 from Canada, found many employees — not just high- potentials — feel blocked in their current position. Forty-one per cent said they would need to leave their organi- zation in order to advance in their careers, and the same percentage of high-potentials also said the same. "e biggest challenge is you have these people that you con- vince that they are special in some way. And then their expectations go up and when the expectations are not met, often they start con- sidering other options," said Igor Kotlyar, associate professor at the University of Ontario Institute of Technology in Toronto. "As people move up in the or- ganization, the number of op- portunities diminishes. (But) people's expectations are still high and they do expect to be given this special time and these promotional opportunities on a regular basis... and when the frequency of these opportunities diminishes, they often get dis- appointed and do start to look elsewhere." Feeling bored or stuck in their careers is a common risk for high-potentials, said Kotlyar. "They do expect a certain amount of challenge and a cer- tain amount of development to take place," he said. "It comes down to managing expectations — I think that becomes the key. You don't always have exciting opportunities (to offer) and you just have to make sure that there are these conversations that take place on a regular basis, and that everybody's on the same page as to what's possible and what's likely to happen." Some employers may often see that tendency towards career boredom among millennials, said LaMere. "ey feel like they should be moving a lot quicker on their ca- reer path… so it's about educating them," she said. "To have them get out of feeling stuck or bored, at any generational level and in any company, let's give them other options. If you're in a position and there's just not that space to advance… let's look at what can you do in your own current job More > pg. 14

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