Why professional services lose talent at the point of promotion
It happens quietly in many professional services firms. Someone talented, capable and well-respected reaches promotion time and instead of stepping up, they step away.
From an HR or L&D perspective, it can be hard to understand. These are your high performers, the people who’ve consistently delivered. Yet when the opportunity for advancement comes, they hesitate. Some say no to promotion. Others accept but soon feel overwhelmed or burnt out.
So, what’s really going on?
The confidence dip that comes with change
Moving from expert-in-a-role to leader of many, is rarely a smooth leap. The strengths that made someone brilliant in their technical role - attention to detail, reliability, depth of expertise - aren’t always what’s called for at the next level. Now it’s about visibility, influence and managing uncertainty.
That shift can stir up self-doubt.
Am I really ready for this?
Do I belong at this level?
What if I let people down?
These are classic impostor feelings. Not a sign of weakness, but a very human response to change, especially in environments where the bar is high and the culture rewards perfection.
When self-doubt becomes a retention risk
People experiencing impostor feelings often compensate by working harder, taking on too much, or avoiding situations where they might be “found out”. It’s exhausting. And over time, it erodes confidence and wellbeing.
So, when promotion time comes, some quietly opt out. They don’t want to fail, so they leave before they can. It’s less about losing them because they’re not ready and more about losing them because they don’t believe they are ready.
For neurodivergent professionals, there’s another layer
Many describe the extra energy it takes to “fit in” or mask differences in how they think, communicate or process information. That constant self-monitoring can make the leap into leadership feel even riskier.
When leadership development assumes everyone learns, processes or leads in the same way, it can unintentionally shut people out.
Creating psychologically safe spaces, where different cognitive styles are noticed and valued, makes a huge difference. Confidence grows when people don’t have to work so hard to be accepted.
What helps
Normalise self-doubt. Make it safe to talk about impostor feelings in leadership conversations. Most people have them, we just rarely admit it.
Build confidence as a skill. Offer coaching and development that helps people reconnect with what they already do well.
Rethink promotion readiness. Don’t confuse quiet confidence with lack of potential.
Design for inclusion. Make leadership pathways flexible enough for different brains and strengths to thrive.
When organisations see self-doubt as something they can shape, not something individuals just need to “get over”, they stop losing brilliant people right at the point they’re needed most.
