What you must know about Talent Management Programs
Talent management professionals work to get and retain the best talent for businesses. Here are the important matters they must know about the process.
In the world of HR professionals, talent management programs are not just another fancy term. Talent management seeks to efficiently hire, develop, and retain top talent in the industry, given that talent is the most valuable resource for a company. A strong talent management process is essential for proper human capital management and development, in turn growing the business.
What is talent management?
Talent management looks to methodically and strategically bring the right talent on board, along with ensuring they grow to their potential and get the right opportunities to develop their skills. All of this is geared toward helping the organization attain its strategic goals.
Talent management professionals look at the following:
· Identifying job or talent gaps
· Identifying talent pools and best-fit candidates
· Sourcing and bringing the right candidates on board
· Developing their skills and giving growth opportunities
· Motivating, engaging, and retaining them
All these individual processes support each other and must be in sync to support the organization.
Why is talent management important?
Talent management programs are key contributors to organizational success and goal attainment. Here are the reasons why:
· Attracting the best talent: The war for talent is forever ongoing, and winning it requires standing out from the crowd. HR professionals must work toward creating a strong employer brand, which organically pulls in the best people.
· Filling critical workforce gaps: Employees exit organizations all the time, and talent management needs to identify critical roles that must be filled at the earliest with a continuous flow or pipeline of talented hires. This helps in maintaining smooth operations and avoids burnout of the existing workforce.
· Engaging employees: A key component of the work of talent management professionals, this promotes the development of skills of employees and motivates them to work well, thus boosting their productivity. It is an important step at every stage of employment.
· Retaining employees: This is very important too, as it would be a waste to hire and engage people just to see them leave soon, possibly to a competitor. Research suggests that attrition is 69 percent lower for companies investing in talent management, as the employees are more motivated. Also, resources and time spent on recruitment is saved.
· Effective strategies and client satisfaction: Efficient work environments facilitate optimization and effective implementation of business strategies. As a result, better products and services are put out, leading to higher client satisfaction. Corporate structures also are refined, delineating responsibilities more clearly and meeting client needs better.
What constitutes a good talent management model?
A good talent management program includes the following components:
· Plan: Understand the business strategy and corresponding gaps in the workforce. Create the corresponding job descriptions and make a proper plan for recruitment. Look through previous plans to pick up best practices and avoid points that failed. A well-integrated workforce gives a clearer picture of talent requirements and allows inputs from other departments on talent requirements.
· Attract: It is important to engage hires and employees in order to attract them to work for the firm. This improves the employer brand and boosts productivity and business, also turning employees into brand ambassadors. Positive reviews from employees get more weightage than mere statements by corporate recruiters, as they believe the good things they are told about the work culture.
· Select: From group discussions to tests and interviews, there are various approaches HR professionals can use to choose the best applicant. What matters is to choose the process best suited to the job at hand i.e. leadership skills for people-related jobs, technical aptitude for technical openings, and others.
· Learning and development: A 2018 survey suggests 94 percent of candidates prefer companies offering opportunities for learning and development. For the employer, a dollar in learning and development is estimated to return 30 dollars in productivity. It is important to look at company goals, identify the corresponding skill gaps, and train to bridge these gaps.
· Retain: Improved communication and accountability are important, as is communication to reinforce the perception that the employees are valued by the company. Managers in particular promote positivity, which is reflected in employees and improves the work culture.
· Transition: If and when a person does choose to exit, it is useful to conduct a proper exit interview to get lessons on what could be improved. Also, better succession planning ensures a smoother transition for the company and the new hire into a vacant position.
Which are the good strategies for talent management?
The following are useful strategies for talent management professionals to implement:
· Create accurate job descriptions with all important details, to explain tasks and inform expectations
· Pick the right fit for the organizational culture to avoid adjustment issues and improve performance
· Develop an employee-centric work culture with a flexible work environment and proper benefits
· Collaborate and coach, with constructive feedback to help employees evolve and develop their skills
· Recognize and reward employees to encourage and motivate them
What else can HR professionals do?
A great idea for an HR professional seeking to develop excellent talent management programs is to pick one of the best talent management certifications, such as those offered by the Talent Management Institute (TMI). TMI offers three excellent certifications for professionals at different levels of work and academic experience, and helps them get the latest skills and knowhow for better job performance and career prospects.
