High Potential: Why the second season is more than just a series – and what it reveals about hidden talents in business
This week marks the moment: episode 13 of the second season of "High Potential". Anyone following the series about the highly intelligent yet chaotic police cleaner, Morgan Gillory, knows it's about much more than just solving crimes. At its core, it's one grand metaphor for something that is fundamentally reshaping our economy and society – the hunt for hidden High Potential.
From the screen to the boardroom: What the series teaches us about the job market
Morgan is constantly underestimated. Her IQ is high, her formal qualifications are not. In the daily grind of the police station, people only see the chaotic cleaner, not the genius. And that's precisely the parallel with countless companies: we run the risk of overlooking our own 'high potentials' because they don't fit the mould. The current second season powerfully demonstrates how these hidden talents – once recognised – can become a decisive competitive advantage.
The series, however, is just one part of a larger phenomenon. The independent film "A Young Man with High Potential" touched on the theme years ago, highlighting the psychological pitfalls faced by a gifted individual. And now, amid the buzz of the second season, it's clear: society is hungry for stories about undiscovered geniuses. We're not just looking for them on screen, but also right next to us in the open-plan office.
The art of seeing the invisible: A call for a new approach to talent management
In the series, it often takes an accident or a stroke of luck to bring Morgan's abilities to light. In the real world of business, we can't rely on chance. We need systematic approaches to identify these talents. It's not about the perfect CV, but about recognising patterns, cognitive flexibility, and that specific form of intelligence that characterises Morgan.
- Data-driven discovery: Much like algorithms in marketing uncover hidden target audiences, we can use people analytics to identify structures within a company that cause potential talent to be overlooked.
- Cultures of learning as an indicator: Those who, like Morgan, learn from mistakes and think outside the box are often held back in rigid hierarchies. Yet these are precisely the high potentials we need.
- Intuition and experience: The seasoned detectives in the series have to learn to trust Morgan's input. Leaders, too, must learn to trust their gut feeling more when someone strikes them as 'too different'.
Beyond the search engine: The optimisation of people
It's interesting to glance sideways at a completely different field. In the digital world, we constantly talk about visibility – for instance, through techniques you can read about in books like "Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) Secrets". The goal is to optimise content for search engines so it can be found. Applying this to personnel management, we need to engage in a kind of 'human optimisation': we must structure processes to attract and reveal the true high potentials. Not to mould them into something they're not, but to finally see their light.
With its second season, the series proves that its creators have understood this principle. They bet on an unconventional heroine, a story with depth – and were rewarded with ratings. This is precisely the logic that Swiss companies need to internalise.
Final thought: The next Morgan could be sitting right next to you
Episode 13 will show us what happens next for Morgan. But away from fiction, we should ask ourselves: how many Morgans are sitting within our own teams? How many young people with high potential are just waiting for the right moment to prove themselves? The series is a wake-up call – and a huge opportunity for everyone willing to rethink things now. Because whoever discovers and nurtures the next high potential first will have the edge, not just on television, but in real life too.