Choosing candidates for promotions is a tricky process — even the best employees don’t always continue to shine as they move up the corporate ladder. Here’s how HR can help management identify rising stars and weed out the duds:

Employees without move-up potential will exhibit several warning signs managers should be on the lookout for. Those who aren’t ready for promotions tend to:

1. Prefer working alone. The higher up in an organization employees move, the more people-oriented their jobs become. When employees would rather be a one-person team, it’s likely because they lack the people skills needed for higher positions.
2. Avoid difficult situations. In a lower-level job, it’s possible to avoid conflict and unpleasant people. But once they’re promoted, employees don’t have that option and will need the skills to tackle those situations head-on.
3. Don’t change their minds or admit they’re wrong. Supervisors must be able to take criticism, adapt to new situations and learn from their mistakes.
4. Avoid risk. Just as poor candidates for promotions won’t admit they’re wrong, they’re also afraid to be in situations where they might have problems. But taking risks and trying something new is a critical part of a supervisor’s job.
5. Shun training. Some workers aren’t interested in learning new skills — or worse yet, they think they know everything already. Those aren’t the people you want to promote.
6. Aren’t excited about their work. Even when employees are competent, they may lack the drive required to take on more responsibility. The signs should be there early on — odds are if they aren’t passionate about their current position, they aren’t ready for a new one.
7. Stay in the background. Some people naturally gravitate toward leadership roles. Those are the people who will take charge of their teams.

So if someone shows a few of those traits, does that mean they’ll never be promotion material? Of course not. But managers will need to help them improve in those areas before they’re ready to move up.

Tags: internal recruiting, managers, promotions