Here is an excerpt from an article written by Eugene Burke for Talent Management magazine. He explains why, despite growth in high potential programs, turnover among them remains high. He suggests several steps to develop a better program for high potential development. To read the complete article, check out all the resources, and sign up for a free subscription to the TM and/or Chief Learning Officer magazines published by MedfiaTec, please click here.

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Recent research from The Corporate Executive Board Co. shows that organizations with strong leadership bench strength have double the rate of revenue and profit growth compared to peers with weaker bench strength. Meanwhile, separate CEB research shows that turnover for existing C-level positions has been rising for the past few years, suggesting an increased need for high potential development programs.

Simply offering a high potential program, however, is not indicative of future business success. While these programs make sense in theory, many are failing to deliver results. In fact, according to a 2013 CEB study, more than half of these employees will turn over in a five-year period. Of those who stick with the program, a 2012 CEB study found that nearly half do not meet business objectives in their first leadership assignment.

Despite these statistics, there is some good news. Although many high potential programs are in need of repair, there are organizations that are realizing significant returns on their investments.

Based on various CEB research studies over the last few years, there are five things that these organizations do differently to identify high-potential employees, keep them engaged and retain them for future leadership roles.

[Here are the first two.]

1. They define “potential” clearly. Many organizations confuse current performance with future potential. While identifying employees who have a strong record of high performance is an important step in identifying them as high potential, it isn’t enough by itself. Most high-performing employees don’t have the necessary qualities to be effective in senior roles, and assuming that high performance is equal to high potential puts the odds at six-to-one that the employee will fail in the program, CEB research shows.

2. They recognize that employees need more than strong performance in their current role to succeed in future roles. Employees need to have the aspiration to rise to a more senior role, the ability to manage and lead effectively, and engagement levels that show commitment to their organization.

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Eugene Burke is a chief scientist and analytics officer at The Corporate Executive Board Company, a member-based research and advisory firm. He can be reached at the CEB.