Self-perceived employability, organization-rated potential, and the psychological contract

Purpose - To study the relationship between self-perceived employability resources and perceived psychological contract (PC) obligations. To examine the extent to which organizational ratings of potential, through their 'signaling' function, might serve as a buffer between employability and PC perceptions that are undesirable from an employer's point of view.

Design/Methodology/Approach - Both self-report data (i.e., self-perceived employability resources and perceived PC obligations) and data reported by the HR departments of the participating organizations (i.e., organizational ratings of potential) were collected in a case-control design (n = 103).

Findings - Self-perceived employability resources are not related to lower intentions to stay with one's current employer. High-potential employees did not perceive themselves as particularly obliged to reciprocate their organizations' additional investments in them by expressing longer-term loyalty, or a higher performance level.

Practical implications - Organizations should not be hesitant to assist their employees in enhancing their employability resources. In addition, they should engage in deliberate psychological contract building with their high-potential employees so as to align their perceived PC obligations with the organizational agenda.

Originality/Value - The relationship between self-perceived employability resources and perceived PC obligations has been underexamined; hardly any PC research has taken organizational variables into account; hardly any research exists on the psychological implications of being identified as a high potential; and the study draws both on self-report data and data reported by the HR departments of the participating organizations.