How to Develop High Potential Leaders to Future Executives
“Despite costing more, external hires perform worse and quit more. Promoting from within fuels individual growth and collective success." – Adam Grant
Identifying potential executives and mentoring high potential employees is the single greatest talent management challenge facing organizations today.
Studies show 71% of employees believed hiring from within is better for scaling a business. Nearly two-thirds believed promoting within beats hiring externally and were two times more likely to say they prefer being managed by someone promoted internally (66%) versus hired externally (34%).
What Is High Potential Leadership Development?
High potential leadership development is a structured program designed to identify, nurture, and accelerate the growth of employees who show the greatest capacity to step into senior leadership roles. Unlike general training, it is tailored to individuals with a specific combination of ability, ambition, and engagement, and designed to close the gap between where they are now and where the organization needs them to be.
The stakes are high. Organizations that do it well build deep leadership pipelines and promote from within. Those that neglect it pay the price in recruiting costs, cultural disruption, and lost institutional knowledge.
Identifying High Potential Leaders
The problem is most businesses aren’t very good at building effective leadership teams. High performing teams need high performing leaders. 74% of companies are identifying potential executives based on performance appraisals and 68.5% based on recommendations from management (CCLInnovation).
Performance measures are often biased by politics and, as we all know, a skilled politician does not always make an effective leader. What’s more, only 30% of high performers are also high potential leaders (Hogan).
They can easily slip under the radar if they’re in a role that doesn’t challenge them, or that they’re new to and need a little talent nurturing to get to the next level. That’s why it’s essential to assess potential, not just performance. Otherwise, your high potential leaders will stagnate and leave for somewhere that does spot their potential, assess their ambitions, and offer support to get on the right track. So it's important we make sure our high potential leaders are really high potential.
High potential leaders – also referred to as ‘emerging leaders’, the ‘leadership pipeline’ and ‘talent bench’ – have several notable characteristics. They have a strategic perspective, jump at opportunities, and take initiative.
IQ gets you in the door, but a high EQ gets you promoted.
The number one reason for managerial derailment is relationship problems (Hogan Assessments), so emotional intelligence is another early indicator of a high potential leader.
High potential leaders inspire and motivate others, and contribute to a collaborative, positive atmosphere. They show imagination, flexibility, resilience, and an eagerness to develop new skills. They also recognize hard work and the importance of constructive feedback.
Executive Coaching for High Potentials
Executive leadership training isn’t just about stimulating the career growth of the leader. It’s about empowering the organization with the leadership it needs to grow and succeed, and ensuring every leader is achieving the maximum impact.
Executive coaching not only enables leaders to better understand their strengths, weaknesses, and blind spots, but it also helps them assess the same for their organization and set realistic objectives to improve upon those weak points, such as improving diversity and inclusivity.
Mentoring high potential employees unlocks a growth mindset to help leaders learn flexibly, think creatively, and see challenges as opportunities for growth rather than something to fear. Executive leadership training provides leaders with the skills to smoothly guide a business through periods of profound change and uncertainty, such as a recession, succession, company acquisition, or a shift to remote work.
Mentoring high potential employees also results in increased emotional intelligence and self-awareness and cultivates empathy. This helps leaders create a psychologically safe space where employees feel comfortable in sharing their ideas and emotions, especially if they’re feeling stuck or unsure. They know their leader will look to understand and support them.
Developing Soft Skills and Communication
77% of HR professionals said developing soft skills was key to their organizations’ future plans (SHRM), so that high potential leaders can become culture ambassadors and think strategically – at the same time!
However, enhancing soft skills can only be done in an experiential leadership training environment. It’s like riding a bike – you won’t learn how to do it properly reading from a book about bike riding.
Experiential leadership training gives leaders the opportunity to navigate real-world leadership challenges and reflect on the decisions they make within the safety of controlled simulations. It gives your leadership pipeline the opportunity to find new solutions to problems and reflect on their emotional responses. Learning by feeling, as well as doing, develops a broad perspective of leadership and management and gives leaders the confidence to react quickly and effectively to real-world leadership challenges. Key leadership competencies that high potential leaders should develop, and strategies for enhancing those soft skills:
Emotional Intelligence
The ability to understand, manage, and use emotions effectively in personal and professional settings, to develop a psychologically safe space.
Self-assessment and reflection
Emotional intelligence workshops
Mindfulness practices
Communication
The ability to convey information and ideas clearly and effectively, both verbally and in writing.
Public speaking courses
Active listening exercises
Written communication workshops
Collaboration and Teamwork
The ability to work well with others, foster co-operation, and build strong relationships.
Team-building activities
Collaboration exercises
Conflict resolution training
Adaptability and Resilience
The capacity to adapt to change and overcome challenges with a positive attitude.
Change management training
Stress management techniques
Resilience-building exercises
Empathy
The ability to understand and share the feelings of others, fostering an inclusive environment.
Empathy training
Active listening exercises
Diversity and inclusion workshops
Informal Feedback and Communication
4 out of 10 workers lose engagement if no feedback is given (OfficeVibe). Offering different types of employee feedback shows you’re personally invested in future executive development, and it’s a key ingredient in unlocking their potential.
When delivered the right way, informal feedback is an invaluable tool for continuous improvement, implementing changes, and encouraging open and honest two-way communication – an essential ingredient in any successful relationship and organization.
Both skills link to self-awareness. According to IO psychologist Tasha Eurich, 10 – 15% of people are truly self-aware, although 95% of people think they are. She scientifically links high self-awareness with higher performance, more promotions, and most importantly, more effective leadership. Continuous feedback drives self-awareness and continuous improvement in future executive development.
Building Your Leadership Pipeline
Talent nurturing creates a leadership pipeline that can really take the reins and uphold a healthy culture, where transparency and communication ensures everyone feels valued, listened to, purposeful, and engaged in their roles. It creates high potential leaders equipped with the invaluable skills to establish a healthy feedback loop and coach and develop others – and happier employees means higher retention.
Effective corporate succession planning is an essential element of talent nurturing and future executive development. It:
Increases the availability of capable individuals prepared for an executive transition.
Promotes long-term planning and big-picture thinking.
Provides HR departments with a guideline for recruiting and development.
Reduces recruiting and hiring costs.
Give your high potential leaders the right tools.
Our Simulation for High Potential Leadership Development uses a combination of neuroscience and experiential learning to throw them in at the deep end with real-life strategic exercises.
Ready to build a high potential leadership development program for your organization? Explore DX Learning's leadership programs or get in touch to learn how our experiential approach accelerates your best people into the leaders your organization needs.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is high potential leadership development?
High potential leadership development is a targeted program that identifies employees with the greatest capacity for senior leadership and accelerates their growth through coaching, experiential training, soft skill development, and continuous feedback. It focuses on developing the people most likely to drive future organizational success, rather than simply rewarding current top performers.
What is a high potential leadership program?
A high potential leadership program is a structured initiative that takes identified high potential employees through a development journey designed to prepare them for executive roles. Effective programs combine executive coaching, experiential simulations, formal mentoring, and honest feedback to build the emotional intelligence, strategic thinking, and communication skills that leadership demands.
How do you identify high potential leaders?
The most effective approach assesses potential, not just performance. Only 30% of high performers are also high potential leaders, so relying on performance reviews alone misses the mark. Look for employees who demonstrate strategic thinking, initiative, emotional intelligence, resilience, and a genuine drive to develop others. Combine structured assessments with manager observations and a defined set of leadership competency benchmarks.
