Hogan Releases High-Potential Business Outcomes Report

TULSA, Okla., May 31, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Managers' ability to climb the corporate ladder isn't the best indicator of their ability to stay on top, according to a report released by Hogan Assessment Systems.

The industry-leading personality assessment and consulting firm released its High-Potential Business Outcomes report, a series of case studies that examine performance, turnover, and promotion trends among more than 500 employees identified as having high leadership potential. The results indicate that study of an individual's values and potential derailers are more effective predictors of long-term success than his or her ability to navigate office politics and forge alliances.

Hogan founder Dr. Robert Hogan said the reason many high-potential identification programs fail to produce lasting leaders is their reliance on supervisor input.

"The performance appraisal literature shows clearly that supervisors' ratings are an imperfect index of job performance," Dr. Hogan said. "Supervisors typically give higher ratings to employees they like. This means politics are as important as performance in determining the careers of high-potential managers."

This approach is problematic because the same personality characteristics that help employees get along and get ahead can turn into leadership derailers under the pressure of an upper management position.

"When we are under the gun, we tend to overuse our strengths, turning them into weaknesses," said Matt Lemming, Client Research Manager at Hogan.

When researchers examined a pool of managers' scores on the Hogan Development Survey, which measures dark side or potentially derailing personality characteristics, they found that candidates displaying high self-confidence and predisposed to taking risks were more attractive to upper management and were promoted more often. Two years down the road, however, those characteristics became debilitating flaws.

"Charm becomes manipulation, creative thinking becomes an unwillingness to let go of bad ideas," Lemming said.

Many high-potential identification programs also fail to take into account organizational culture fit as an indicator of a candidate's potential for longevity. Yet the study found the majority of managerial turnover resulted from misaligned personal and organizational values as measured by Hogan's Motives, Values, Preferences Inventory.

"The bottom line is this: A manager's success boils down to his or her ability to form and maintain a productive team," Lemming said. "Without accounting for his or her potential derailers and ability to fit in, there is no way to predict how someone will do in the executive suite."

About Hogan Assessment Systems

Hogan Assessment Systems is the global leader in providing comprehensive, research-based personality assessment and consulting. Grounded in decades of research, Hogan's assessment solutions help businesses dramatically reduce turnover and increase productivity by hiring the right people, developing key talent, and evaluating leadership potential.

SOURCE Hogan Assessment Systems