Talent Management in Companies

"It doesn't make sense to hire smart people and then tell them what to do. We hire smart people so they can tell us what to do."
-Steve Jobs

The COVID-19 pandemic has forever changed the work culture.

The World Economic Forum reports that organizations now know that "the employee-centric work model is a key factor in the battle to attract top talent."

The term "employee-centric" can be intimidating for some, but the reality is that companies that have been better at managing their talents have always had better results.

We will see why, and we will understand that "employee-centric" doesn't necessarily mean what one might think.

Talent Management in Companies Goes Beyond Searching for "The Superstar"!

When we talk about talent management, we’re not just talking about finding the next "Cristiano Ronaldo." After all, Cristiano Ronaldo, when he wants, can leave anytime.

Simply getting applications for a job is no longer enough, whether in the public or private sector.

According to the article by consultant Susan Heathfield, “Why Talent Management Is an Important Business Strategy to Develop”, companies must "recruit, hire, retain, and develop the most talented and top-performing employees available in the labor market."
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Recruit, Hire, Retain, Develop.

How do we do this? We’ve gathered three key elements that data says are essential. They’re not a magic formula, and they’re not easy to implement, but these are the three things that consistently work!

Talent Management in Companies: Quick Assignment

According to this article by McKinsey, the first of the three fundamental aspects of good talent management in a company is the ability to quickly assign talent. In simple terms, it means being able to move talented individuals onto different tasks based on the urgent needs that arise and dissolve.

It sounds easy, but it seems that only one-third of the companies they surveyed considered their organization capable of performing this kind of task.

For those who manage to do it, the results are extraordinary: a 40% higher chance of outperforming.

All companies already know that moving their financial capital quickly and smartly is a recipe for success, but few realize that the same applies to their "human capital."

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Talent Management in Companies: Employee Experience

In an increasingly employee-centric culture, this point was predictable.

The cycle is very simple: talent management affects the employee’s life. The employee affects the company's results. The company affects talent management. But how can you influence the employee experience?

Positively influencing the employee experience doesn’t mean outfitting the common room with a foosball table. It means offering continuous training, providing interesting projects to work on, giving clear perspectives for the future, and being open, within reason, to asynchronous/remote work options.

The company that achieves this would see, according to McKinsey, a 170% increase in retention.

📣 By the way!
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Talent Management in Companies: The HR Team

Now, we arrive at the essential element: to do all of the above, having a strong HR team is crucial. How do I know if an HR team is a good one?

According to McKinsey, three factors are crucial:

1) The HR team must deeply understand the company's strategy and business priorities.

2) The HR team should have cross-functional (or interfunctional) experiences. What does that mean? Instead of forming a team of people who have only worked in HR throughout their careers, it’s important to introduce individuals who have worked in other areas: a salesperson, a designer, a marketer, etc.

3) The CEO, CFO (Chief Financial Officer), and CPO (Chief People Officer) must communicate perfectly.

Given these conditions, there’s a greater than 40% chance of outperforming!

Conclusions

We’ve discussed Talent Management in Companies.

Although no strategy is universal, working on these three areas results in an 80% higher chance of outperforming and a 1.7 times better retention rate.

In a world where talent will increasingly make the difference, that’s not bad!