“Many organizations struggle to spot high potential employees because they do not have a consistent process across the enterprise to spot talent. Leaders use different criteria so they do not look at talent the same way,” says Mark Bocianski, global head of talent management & learning, Western Union.

Mark Bocianski is the Chairperson at the marcus evans Corporate Learning & Talent Development Summit 2018, taking place April 29 - May 1.

Why are organizations not always able to spot shining stars?

They do not have the systems required to capture information about potential talent so they cannot follow up when the time comes. They neglect to look at talent at the acquisition stage. They hire good people, the indications that they have great potential might be there, but they do not pay much attention to them until their career has progressed. Leaders must start earlier as anyone in the organization can potentially be very talented.

How would you define high potential? Which characteristics would you highlight?

The price of entry is strong performance. Many mistake high performance for high potential, but you still need to be a performer. Employees must have an intellectual curiosity, look at opportunities and problems from a solution perspective, be willing to listen, do what it takes, learn quickly, understand context, and not be afraid of challenges. Some of these characteristics surface early on while others take longer. High potentials are typically ready to progress to new opportunities quickly as they master their first roles quickly.

How do you unlock and develop potential? 

We must give people opportunities to learn and grow, to take on different challenges through job or project assignments. Experience plays a key role in developing potential to its fullest. This is where organizations often fail because they identify high potentials and put them through a program. It is more important to provide experiences and exposure to leaders. The best learning takes place when people can work with managers several levels more senior, so they can experience how decision-making and problem-solving occurs.

How can organizations nurture potential? 

By having a consistent set of criteria, and understanding that managers and leaders are responsible for developing people as they are organizational assets. There is the need to think about high potential employees a little differently because it is not about what they need today but what they will need in the future. There must be a longer term view of potential. Nurturing is about thinking of the future, providing experiences and continuous feedback, especially for employees with potential.

How should this be managed organizationally? 

The organizational philosophy needs to be that talent is a company asset and not the property of the manager. The manager plays a key role in nurturing potential in people who will move on. From a systems perspective, whatever the criteria of potential is, they have to articulate it to everyone and build a system that captures potential at the right levels. Capturing it consistently and holding leaders accountable is where organizations often fail. When someone is “potential” one year but not the next, it is important to ask what has changed. The organization may have put them into the wrong role or failed to provide adequate support, so they did not perform as well. Is it the organization’s fault and how it views or defines potential? Or is the person no longer high potential? The organization must capture the fact that someone has potential and hold leaders accountable to actually developing it.

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Ahead of the marcus evans Corporate Learning & Talent Development Summit 2018, the 
Chairperson Mark Bocianski discusses how to accelerate and manage potential organizationally

Mark Bocianski

Global Head of Talent Management & Learning

Western Union

How to Harness Employee Potential

Recent Delegates
  • Head of Talent and Performance, Best Buy
  • Head, Global Learning and Development, Campbell Soup Company
  • Director – Talent Management, Duke Energy
  • Director – Global Learning & Talent Development, Estée Lauder Companies
  • SVP, Global Talent & Organization Development, Hewlett Packard Company
  • Director, Global Learning and Development, Kimberly Clark Health Care
  • Chief Learning Officer, MasterCard Worldwide

     and more…

About the Corporate Learning & Talent Development Summit

The Corporate Learning & Talent Development Summit is the premium forum bringing elite buyers and sellers together. The Summit offers solution providers, talent management, learning and development and HR executives from America’s leading corporations an intimate environment for a focused discussion of key new drivers shaping the industry. Taking place at the Eau Palm Beach Resort & Spa, Palm Beach, Florida, April 29 - May 1, the Summit includes presentations on leadership development, employee engagement, creating the environment to maximize potential, succession planning and change management.

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Summit Speakers
  • Jana Brown, Senior Vice President, Human Resources, Chief Operating Officer and Business Partner, TIAA
  • Kent Bradley, Daniels Fellow for Leadership in Health and Wellbeing, University of Denver, Board of Directors, Dignity Health
  • Joseph Kalkman, Chief Human Resources Officer, CentraCare Health
  • Julie Mullen, Vice President, Organizational Effectiveness, Prudential Financial
  • Pamela Stroko, Vice President, HCM Transformation & Thought Leadership, Oracle
  • Rob Ollander-Krane, Director, Talent planning and Performance, Gap Inc

     and more...

29 April - 1 May 2018

Eau Palm Beach Resort & Spa, Palm Beach, Florida

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