This could not have occurred at a worse time. One of your most valued engineers has just handed you his resignation. How could this happen? Only last week he was unanimously placed on the organization's High Potential List by the senior staff. You personally told him on several occasions that he was being groomed for a management position and that a development program was being designed. However, it appears that these actions were insufficient. He is leaving for a company that is well known for being proactive in developing people.

Scenes like this are played out countless times each day around the country. Companies often fail to see that the Key to Retaining the "Best and the Brightest" is formal and informal development. These organizations frequently fall prey to the following myths.

Myth #1 - High achievers take care of their own development
The literature is clear on the need of high achievers to receive ongoing feedback on performance, including how to prepare for the next position. Knowing they are on the High Potential List is not enough. High achievers expect concrete steps to enhance their skills. If you don't provide this support, an other organization will.

Myth #2 - If you invest in developing people, they will eventually leave the company
This type of thinking was common in management circles twenty years ago, and it was groundless even then. At that time, training was costly and very often too theoretical for day-to-day application. When graduates of these programs resigned, managers (due to the expectation of long-term employment) frequently experienced feelings of betrayal.

Today, organizations understand the importance of keeping development concrete and company-focused. When the development/training is designed to help the individual become more proficient in his or her current position, then both the organization and the individual benefit. When the development prepares the employee for the next level of responsibility, the same logic applies. If the individual ultimately decides to leave the organization, you will have accrued a healthy day-to-day return on your investment and the organization's reputation on a plane that develops people.

Myth #3 - Leaders are born not made
In his book, A Force for Change - How Leadership Differs from Management, John P. Kotter explains the downside of subscribing exclusively to the belief that traits tied to heredity, such as charisma, are the most important attributes required to being a good leader. Kotter states, "This belief is important because it is often used to justify corporate policies of benign neglect regarding the development of people's leadership potential. It is also employed by individuals, often unconsciously, to rationalize a passive stance toward their own career development." Naturally, there are traits acquired through heredity that help leaders excel. However, we need to explore life and work experience or the "Leaders are made" theory, as critical in leadership success. Don't use the "Leaders are born, not made" theory as an excuse not to develop work experiences as a component of leadership development.

There is much that an organization can do to develop and subsequently retain high potential employees. Consider the following steps as a foundation for these purposes.

1. Identify the organization's most valuable employees.

2. Create development plans for each of these individuals.

3. Concentrate on work-related assignments as the major focus for these development plans.

4. If internal capability is not available to do the above, get outside consulting help.

Purposeful development of the "best and the brightest" can increase retention while enhancing current performance. This truly results is a win/win situation for the individual and the organization.

Copyright 2006, Mark J. Campbell. All rights reserved.
Permission to reprint this article is granted, provided you let me know where it is being printed, the copyright is not removed, and the following text accompanies each article:

"Mark Campbell partners with organizations for leadership development. For a complimentary subscription to his newsletter, "Management Challenges," go to www.mjcampbellassoc.com."

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