By integrating development into the fabric of the organisation, there is less chance that a high flyer’s development and reward will be seen as an outlier, and more as something that exists to support progress within the business. This reduces the perception of preferential treatment among employees and of some people feeling overlooked in favour of others.
“Integration also comes through in making sure people teams do not work in silos but instead work alongside employees across different departments as partners,” adds Wheeler. “This ensures the people function can understand every team’s requirements, long-term strategy, and growth plans, to help identify talent and development opportunities and ensure everyone is working towards a shared vision."
An integrated approach is also supported at BI WORLDWIDE. “Rather than isolating high-potential employees in exclusive programs, we integrate their learning into everyday operations,” confirms Rowe.
High performers engage in “stretch assignments” and projects, such as the company’s community project, which allow them to apply their skills while positively influencing teams. At the same time, Rowe and her team work to ensure high potential employees remain aligned with the company’s vision and contribute to building a high-performance culture that lifts everyone.
“A career path can be about moving sideways to increase knowledge, as well as moving up the hierarchy, and so organisations should create opportunities to cross departments, work on key projects, and enhance skills within the organisation.”
At Talogy, Sax is keen to point out that while high flyers may be expected to rise to the top of an organisation, the process by which they get there may not be straightforward. Learning, development, work, and life rarely operate to simple cause and effect rules. Consequently, HR should always remember that progressing someone through the workplace might not represent a straight line.
“A career path can be about moving sideways to increase knowledge, as well as moving up the hierarchy, and so organisations should create opportunities to cross departments, work on key projects, and enhance skills within the organisation,” Sax says. “The key is that employees acknowledge and recognise the opportunities available to them, and understand that career progression is not always linear.”