Talent Management by Successful Companies

The previous articles discussed how successful companies develop and nurture lea
ders and groom them for higher roles as their career progresses. The role of the
HRM function is critical, as there needs to be excellence all around and not ju
st in one area. In other words, it is not enough if a company has a brand image
in the market that attracts top quality talent but is not doing well once this t
alent starts working in the company. Take for instance, the Indian IT behemoth,
Infosys. Though working there is a dream come true for many graduates, in recent
months, the company has been hit with astounding attrition, as the company is n
ot doing well in terms of retaining and nurturing talent. On the other hand, com
panies like Microsoft, Google, and Apple not only attract the best talent in the
market but also manage them well leading to their practices becoming a model fo
r other companies to follow. This article analyzes the best talent management pr
actices of successful companies and the role of the HRM function in nurturing an
d grooming talent.

Some Aspects in Talent Management

The first aspect for global companies is to not be parochial in their hiring pra
ctices and instead, welcome diversity by recruiting international talent, employ
ees from different backgrounds, and in general diversify the employee base. Next
, is the identification and grooming of high potentials that would give the orga
nization a pool of leaders from which they can draw upon when faced with a situa
tion where leaders are needed. Though this is a practice that is followed in man
y companies, the successful companies also identify emerging leaders and not onl
y those who have established themselves. The point here is that successful talen
t management needs the HRM staff and the senior management to draw up a list of
potential leaders at both ends of the talent development chain. In other words,
these companies start from the lower levels and go on till the middle and senior
management levels. The third aspect of successful talent management is the prov
ision of both vertical and horizontal job opportunities for the existing employe
es. This means that the employees are provided with a menu of career options tha
t would enable them to shift role and find fulfillment in the role of their choi
ce. The reason why this aspect is very important is that often many companies st
ifle their employees by not providing change of job functions or roles leading t
o widespread dissatisfaction among the employees.

Creating a Fulfilling Work Culture

The fourth aspect of successful talent management is that these companies provid
e their employees with a change of work location where the reason for such a mov
e is not to simply move talent to locations where there are shortfalls but also
the need for the employees personal development is taken into consideration. The
point here is that successful talent management requires that employees feel pri
vileged working for the company and their needs for self-actualization and fulfi
llment be taken care of by the company. Indeed, successful companies often have
people first policies where the focus is on creating a stimulated and fast-paced
environment that encourages and fosters individual growth and the work environm
ent is much more engaging than a workplace that is solely concerned with profits
.

Closing Thoughts

Finally, successful companies often have lower attrition rates even if their com
pensation practices match the industry standard but are not higher than other co
mpanies. In other words, as mentioned in the introductory paragraph, successful
talent management requires all around excellence in the realms of leadership dev
elopment, talent management, and performance management. While the first two top
ics have been covered, the performance management in successful companies would
be covered in the next article.