The need for organizations to retain and grow high potential employees has never been greater. The squeeze is on for top talent as organizations grapple with change initiatives, downsizing, early retirements and leaner workforces. For managers and employees alike, dealing with these realities can contribute to stressful work environments, which can lead high potential employees to disengage and derail.

What does derailment mean?

Derailment happens when a previously high-performing employee is no longer working up to their potential. Sometimes derailment is referred to as a lack of employee engagement. A truly engaged employee is willing to put their own discretionary time into their work. They volunteer for projects, stay late to finish deadline work, and contribute new ideas and innovative thinking.  When they disengage, these positive behaviors start to wane.

The first signs of employee derailment are often subtle. However, observant managers can catch the problem at this stage and remedy the situation much more easily. Early signs that are easier to spot might include:

• Arriving late or leaving early more often
• No longer volunteering for projects or community involvement activities
• Sitting in silence during staff meetings when they were previously a frequent contributor of ideas
• Doing “just enough” versus going beyond the requirements

If these early indicators go unseen, derailment can take on more noticeable forms. For example:

• Saying out loud to other employees, “Nothing will ever change here, so why bother trying to improve things.”
• Carrying on conversations that have an “us” (employee) versus “them” (management) spin
• Not completing work on time
• Making more mistakes at work

These behaviors not only affect the employee’s performance they also impact everyone the employee comes in contact with. Disengagement can be contagious so it’s important to take proactive steps quickly.

Countless studies have identified what keeps employees engaged and, therefore, more likely to be productive and stay in the organization. Employee responses to surveys indicates that the top two factors are:

• Senior management’s interest in the employee’s well-being
• Challenging work

In contrast, there are four primary causes of employee derailment:

1. Manager’s management style
2. Employee successes not recognized
3. No opportunity for career growth, exciting projects or stretch goals
4. Something going on in the employee’s personal life

Whatever the reason, the first step to getting the employee back on track is to initiate dialogue. Many managers are hesitant to have this kind of conversation because they don’t want to upset the employee or risk even more discontent. However, the risk of doing nothing is far greater than the risk of beginning a dialogue.

Having a conversation with a derailing employee can demonstrate concern and appreciation for past accomplishments, which can go a long way. The best way to get started is to first write down your observations. This will allow you to go into the conversation with clarity about changes that you have noticed. Remember: regardless of what the issue is, the goal is to achieve behavior change, get the employee performing at the top of his/her game again, and find a way to retain that high potential employee in the organization.

An optimal approach is to engage the employee with an informal, casual tone. Sometimes it can help to break the ice to let the employee know that you have always valued his/her contribution to the organization and to cite examples. Once the dialogue has begun, ask the employee some open-ended questions. Make the conversation all about them and listen attentively. Often managers will go into a discussion with preconceived notions about what could help the situation or what the employee needs in order to get re-engaged. However, it is extremely important that managers let go of any assumptions and remain open to hearing what is truly on the high-potential employee’s mind.

The next step after a positive conversation is to follow through by addressing and remedying the situation. For example, if it’s clear that the employee is not excited or challenged by the work he/she is doing, then the manager should do everything possible to remedy the problem. If the employee expresses that he/she wants to be more autonomous in his/her work, the manager may need to adjust his/her management style. If the employee says he/she has not had career growth opportunities, then providing management training or mentoring might be the solution.

There are some key points to think about when deciding how much time and effort to put into re-engaging a derailed high-potential employee:

• Studies show that less than 20% of employees are highly engaged and a similar number are completely disengaged. The rest are in the middle (moderately engaged) and can be pulled in either direction.
• Highly engaged employees provide a role model and inspire others. They are creative problem solvers and produce quality work. They tend to be proactive and advocates for change that ultimately benefit the organization.

In our work with organizations in both the public and private sectors, Edizen helps managers to identify, develop and retain high-potentials. We have developed assessment tools and guides to help managers learn the skills and hone the capabilities necessary to effectively help derailing employees to re-engage with the organization and achieve their highest level performance.

EDIZEN Insights #24
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