Structured match future requirements with projected staff qualifications the increasing shortage makes it essential to rely on its own reserves for companies. Using potential analysis the opportunity the own employees targeted for the new requirements develop. The potential analysis or even potential assessment is a special type of personnel assessment. In contrast to the personnel assessment, has the potential analysis but not the current or past performance aspect to the content, but is determining the future potential of the employee. The objective of the potential analysis is in the generation of a future-oriented, reliable, and predictable human resources development.

Fundamentally, potential analyses in sequential and absolute potential analyses can be distinguished. While the sequential analysis relates only to the next higher hierarchical level, the absolute potential analysis focuses on the development horizon of an employee over a period of time by several years. By means of detecting methods, specialist, social, personality and change competence of staff development activities can be tailored directly to the real needs. Can be countered by target-oriented a parent or Unterforderung the employee, causing an increase in employee satisfaction can be achieved. Also through the use of analysis of potential opportunity possible new employees in less time to be able to appreciate, mistakes in the readjustment to effectively reducing, if not prevent, better. In the course of potential analyses it is in entrepreneurial practice, in a first step, to analyze requirements and job profiles on their timeliness and accuracy. This is usually by means of a comparison in the job description described with the skills needed in fact for the pursuit of activities and skills. This identified deviations or Delta can be resolved either by updating the job descriptions or but also through targeted development measures at the appropriate places holders. Future requirements on the job the employee can be identified derived from the business goals much easier due to the actuality of the job descriptions.