A WSJ article that I read got me thinking. No, not about the recently repealed policy governing sexual orientation in the military, but rather about whether or not managers have an obligation to communicate an employee’s high potential (HIPO) status or lack thereof.
According to a recent Towers Watson study of 316 North American companies, over two thirds formally identify HIPOs. However, only 28% of the companies surveyed actually tell their employees they’ve been designated as such.
An interesting debate has recently been taking place (it’s probably been going on for a while, however, this topic has only piqued my interest lately). While proponents say that telling is a great strategy for engaging and retaining your HIPO employees, opponents fear that communicating the HIPO tag could foster a sense of entitlement and divisiveness between the haves and have-nots.
Personally, I’m in the “Do Tell” camp. Reason being, in the uber-competitive war for talent, leaders must do everything (legally) possible to retain their top talent. Knowing one’s status is a lot better than leaving employees to wonder…and possibly grow disenchanted. Of course, communicating one’s HIPO status should come with a bunch of strings (e.g., designation is revocable, no guarantees, what you must do to maintain your HIPO status). However, in the long term, I think it would a lot easier and more effective to manage HIPOs who know vs. don’t know (and leave).
What say you?
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