What is Talent Management?​

Many companies are changing their organizational structure, but they are following old patterns when it comes to talent management. In fact, employees develop off the classical career paths in only one in three companies. According to the 2018 Talent Management Study by Kienbaum, almost 70 percent of companies geared career development only with management positions as vertical advancement with very little emphasis placed on other advancement opportunities. But what exactly does Talent Management mean?

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Talent Management is the combination of all activities that ensures the optimal staffing of important key positions. In short: matching the right candidate with the right job at the right time. The increasing shortage of skilled workers and the growing demands of talent on the job market are a challenge. Already 58% of jobseekers drop out of the application process due to complicated application procedures or too slow reactions from the company. (Statista 2019). But with a talent management strategy fuelling your activities, everything becomes much easier.

The aim is to discover the so-called high potentials, to win them over, train them further, promote them and bind them to the company in the long term. This is much easier said than done because they are not easy to find. According to Linkedin’s global recruiting trends, over 75% of high potentials are passive job seekers. The definition of a high potential varies from company to company and depends on the position needed to be filled. Depending on which qualifications are required and which skills the talent brings with him or her, you can define whether they are Talent, or not.

Once this is determined, Talent Management activities can be directed both internally and externally. A combination of both is the key to success.

Internal Talent Management – a look inside the company

Often qualified candidates for filling a critical position are already within the company. Identifying, promoting and retaining them is part of internal talent management.

External Talent Management – the external mouthpiece

If positions cannot be allocated internally, external talent management deals with all external recruiting measures to find talent. These include classic job advertisements, social recruiting, active sourcing and employee recruitment programs.

Disciplines of Talent Management

Talent Management can also be divided into three disciplines. The following is a brief outline:

Fostering Talent

 

This discipline aligns with the usual personnel development measures.

The focus is on the optimal filling of specialist and management positions in the interests of the company and employee. The promotion of competencies and the further development of employees through well-defined target agreements, training and further education platforms are just a few of the possible options to foster quality talent within your company.

 

Sourcing Talents

Many may immediately think of recruitment – this is of course part of this discipline, but potential talent can also be found within a company. It is important to be vigilant for your own existing employees and not to overlook existing high potentials. Otherwise, they will change employers in the long term in order to utilise their skills elsewhere. A study by Middlesex University for Work Based Learning surveyed 4,300 employees and found that 74% did not feel they were using their full potential due to a lack of opportunities for development within the company.

40% are even considering quitting their jobs within the first year due to a lack of support.

To prevent this, it is advisable to consider answers to the following two questions in advance:

  • What skills does a candidate for the key position need to have?
  • How are these competencies identified and measured?
  • Internally, these can be done through staff appraisals, personnel assessments and portfolios.
  • Externally, standard recruiting measures can be defined with clear requirement profiles and potential analyses

The binding of Talent

This is probably one of the most difficult tasks in Talent Management. Unconditional loyalty to an employer is difficult to achieve and even harder to maintain. If you succeed in optimally placing talents in positions, loyalty is improved. The job is fun and they can make the most of their skills. A good working atmosphere is also an important factor in binding employees to a company and this is a tactic being employed in 44 % of the companies. ( Statista 2019 )

Nevertheless, it is worth thinking about what could motivate an employee to change employers. The answers to these questions can be consciously addressed to counteract this.

Here are a few prevention principles to focus on:

Appreciative corporate and management culture
As the famous Peter Drucker saying goes, “Culture eats strategy for breakfast.”

The living corporate culture and management is characterized by a pleasant atmosphere, transparency and participative interaction with employees.

Consistency of goals
The employee’s goals are in line with the company’s objectives or offer opportunities, such as flexible working hours, sabbaticals.

Offer of perspectives
High potentials usually have a strong performance and career motivation. It is important to recognise and promote this. Offering perspectives in the form of career models motivates and supports the bond to the company.

Rewarding performance
This principle interacts with the appreciative corporate culture. If outstanding achievements are recognised and rewarded, this strengthens the company loyalty and motivation of the individual employees. This can be done in monetary terms or by considering future appointments to higher positions.

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