When There’s Nowhere to Promote a Star Employee

---

Hey Spark Family,

So many leaders I talk to right now are carrying the same quiet tension.

They have a star employee.
Someone capable, committed, and clearly ready for more.

And yet, there’s nowhere for them to go.

No open role above them. No obvious next step. No clean promotion path.
Just a growing gap between what this person is ready for and what the organization can offer.

This moment is becoming more common. Flat structures. Slower senior-level movement. Restructuring. Fewer seats at the table.

And it’s one of the most delicate leadership moments there is.

Because when high performers feel stuck, they don’t always speak up.
They start disengaging long before they leave.

The Research Is Clear

Recent workforce research shows that lack of perceived career growth is one of the strongest predictors of voluntary turnover, especially among high performers.

Gallup consistently finds that employees who do not believe their organization supports their development are significantly more likely to disengage or start looking elsewhere.

➡ And here’s the nuance leaders often miss:
Career growth does not always require a title change.
But it does require visible momentum.

When people feel their impact is expanding, their commitment usually follows.
When they feel stalled, frustration builds quickly, even if everything else is “going well.”

What I'm Seeing In The Field

Many leaders assume the hard part is delivering the news that there’s no promotion.

In reality, the hardest part is what comes next.

High performers don’t want empty reassurance.
They want to know their future still matters.

When leaders avoid the conversation or gloss over it, people fill in the blanks themselves. And those assumptions are rarely generous.

The leaders who retain their best people do three things well:
They’re honest.
They’re intentional.
And they expand growth beyond the org chart.

High achievers are determined to grow. And if they can’t grow where they are, they will grow somewhere else.

↓

What We Teach Leaders Inside Spark Brilliance

Inside Spark Brilliance, we help leaders decouple growth from titles and reconnect it to impact.

That means focusing on three areas:

1. Scope
   ​Expanding what someone owns, influences, or shapes across the organization.
2. Visibility
   ​Creating opportunities for high performers to be seen, heard, and trusted by senior leaders.
3. Meaning
   ​Aligning work with strengths, purpose, and the problems they most want to solve.

Growth isn’t vertical by default.
It’s experiential.

When leaders design growth intentionally, people stay engaged even when promotions are paused.

🌟 Your Challenge This Week

Think about one high performer on your team.

Ask yourself:

• Where could their influence expand?
• What responsibility could stretch them meaningfully?
• How might I signal trust more clearly?

Then have the conversation you may be avoiding.

Not about what’s unavailable.
About what’s possible.

Because the best leaders don’t just open doors, they build paths.

With gratitude,
​Jackie

P.S. – If you’ve navigated this tension recently, you’re not alone. Hit reply and tell me what’s worked or what you’re still figuring out. These conversations matter more than we often realize. ✨

Did someone forward this to you? Subscribe to get it delivered directly.