Perspectives on Potential

Topic: Potential, Talent Management
Publication: Industrial and Organizational Psychology: Perspectives on Science and Practice
Article: The Pearls and Perils of Identifying Potential
Authors: R. Silzer and A. Church
Selected commentary authors: Robinson, Fetters, Riester, & Bracco; Dalal & Nolan
Reviewed By: Samantha Paustian-Underdahl

 Identifying and developing talented employees is a human resource strategy that can help many – if not all – companies achieve business success. However, with the multitude of theories and techniques currently being used by practitioners and academics, how do you know the best way to identify talent in your organization? Silzer and Church (2009) introduce a new integrated model of potential that includes theories from previous literature and trends from current practices regarding high potentials which can be applied to a variety of settings and talent pools.

Trends in talent management are shifting from using short-term strategies for selecting employees for positions here and now, to hiring employees who will grow with the organization and eventually become successful in a higher-level organizational role. The authors explain that there are generally two types of potential assessed within organizations—the stable traits and competencies that a person already has, and the ability a person has to develop and learn new competencies. Silzer and Church note that within these two broad categories are three components of potential that should be considered in any talent management strategy: 1) foundational dimensions, 2) growth dimensions and 3) career dimensions.

1.    Foundational Dimensions - stable competencies that a person has throughout their adult career. They include cognitive ability, personality characteristics, and interpersonal abilities.

2.    Growth Dimensions - components that facilitate or obstruct a person’s growth and development. These may include adaptability, flexibility and motivation. These traits may be fairly stable across situations, but if a person has the opportunity to learn more about a particular area of interest in a supportive environment, these components can become stronger.

3.    Career Dimensions -  early indicators of potential for a specific career area. These will be specific to different careers but may include supervisory skill (indicating potential in a management role) or design and implementation skills (indicating potential in project management).