How to Spot Leadership Potential in Employees
For managers who want to find their next leader and suspect the best one may not be raising a hand.
To identify leadership potential in employees, look for people who already make the team better without a title, and ask the team itself who they see as a leader before you decide. Some of the strongest future leaders never apply, because they do not feel ready. A process that only looks at applicants can miss them completely.
I have filled a lot of leadership roles over the years. I still post the openings and do the interviews. But behind the scenes, I also ask the people who would be led. Without telling them who applied, I ask who they think should lead the team and who makes the team better.
Most of the names that come up applied. Not all of them.
In one round, the team named a woman who had not applied at all. She was a peer, but her colleagues already saw her as a leader. She simply had not raised her hand.
I told her how her team saw her. She is a leader at a different company today.
In another round, we hired a woman whom the majority of the team named as a great leader. The team had already decided before I had.
That survey came mostly from my own network, so it describes that group rather than every workforce. But it matches what I have seen. The people who doubt themselves most are often the ones who stay quiet when a role opens.
Six signs of leadership potential, and how to find them
People already go to them
Watch who people turn to when they are stuck. If teammates already bring their questions and problems to someone, that person is leading without a title.
They make the people around them better
The heart of leadership is developing people. Notice who trains the new hire without being asked, shares what they know and celebrates someone else’s win. I tell people to do the job before they have the title.
They show the traits you cannot train
When I decide who is ready for more, I look for humility, drive, emotional intelligence and integrity. Skills can be built. Those traits are much harder to teach, and they are what people will follow.
They take ownership when things go wrong
Leaders are revealed on bad days. Watch who says “here is what I could have done differently” and who looks for someone else to blame.
Ask the team before you decide
This is the habit that has helped me most. One question, asked privately and without naming candidates, surfaces people a job posting never will: “Who do you think should lead this team, and who makes it better?”
Treat “I am not ready” as the start of a conversation
Some no answers are real, and they deserve respect. Others are worry about readiness, and readiness is something you can help build. Ask what is behind it, lay out the training and support they would have, and then let it be their decision.
Raising your hand is one signal
that someone is ready to lead.
It should not be the only way in.
A word of caution
Being trusted by peers is not the same as being ready to manage them. I still look hard at whether someone can handle the parts of leadership a peer never sees, like hard conversations and holding people accountable. If you promote from within, my guide on leading people who used to be your peers can help your new leader through the first few months.
And for the people who are not chosen this time, sit down with them and build a development plan for next time. I center those plans on developing the people around them, because that is something anyone can do without a title.
Common questions
How do you identify high-potential employees?
Look for people who already make the team better without a title, show traits like humility, drive, emotional intelligence and integrity, and take ownership when things go wrong. Then ask the team who they see as a leader.
Why do some high-potential employees not apply for promotions?
Many do not feel ready, even when others clearly see them as leaders. A process that only reviews applicants can miss them.
Should you ask employees who they want as a leader?
Asking privately, without revealing who applied, can surface people you would otherwise miss. Use it as one input alongside interviews and performance, not as a vote.
What are the signs someone is ready to lead?
People already go to them for help, they develop others without being asked, they own mistakes, and the team already trusts them.
Watch who already makes the team better, ask the team who they see as a leader, and do not let a raised hand be the only way in.
You Are Capable
of More.
Ten principles for becoming the person you know you are capable of being, built from real stories of people who doubted themselves and did it anyway. Winner of the How-To category at the 2026 Paris Book Festival.
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