How To Effectively Keep Up With Competitors Through Talent Management

Today’s highly sophisticated business world has one very specific trait – it was built on the foundation of evolving and multiplying capital, which has long surpassed labour as the primary determinant of productivity in all but a few (mostly basic) industries. Capital itself comes in different shapes, but the one currently creating the most value and competitiveness for employers is indubitably the human capital of their employees.

It can be said that this type of personal and professional value has always been sought by top management and their HR teams, but the process of benefiting from talented employees requires much more than simply selecting and hiring them.

Identify unique competencies

Talent comes in many distinctive forms and every different skillset has a range of effective, sensible applications. However, being talented in one area or activity never guarantees that the person in question can apply that talent to other fields, even though they might seem quite similar at first. A good manager should be able to assess talents and define areas of excellence and link them into required duties and sectors within the organization, as to maximize the basic personal-to-positional alignment. This is the first nominal step towards harnessing amazing results from one’s talented employees.

Leverage your organizational framework

If a business is planning on attracting and keeping top talent, it is paramount that top managers create a clear and systematized organizational structure, where every position has precisely defined requirements in terms of qualifications, duties and compensation. This will allow talented professionals to put their skills to use in the most efficient way and understand their work surroundings. In such an environment, employees will complement each other and create organizational synergy in addition to their individual work and productivity.

Attain holistic alignment

Having talented professionals in your enterprise will not yield the expected level of benefits if their efforts and qualities are not clearly guided towards a higher common goal. Ideally, this goal represents the embodiment of your company’s vision, mission and strategy and becomes a great driver for success and achieving tremendous results. Talented employees working in proper positions and focusing on meeting precisely defined milestones make for a powerful system of lasting value. One should keep in mind that any talent out of alignment not only fails to contribute as much as it could, but it likely to deteriorate over time due to it being misused or underutilized. They require proper handling to ensure the desired level of commitment, productivity and growth.

Emphasize leadership

In order to prevent the previously mentioned possibility of talents wasting away due to misalignment, proper leadership must be nurtured and applied. Highly talented employees benefit from good guidance as much as anyone else, because the fundamental reasoning behind the concept of talent is rather simple – it’s raw potential, and fully realizing it means working hard, but also working smart. A good leader with consistent leadership criteria inspires and guides talented professionals to help them maximize qualities for both the enterprise and themselves.

Foster continuous learning

Talent can mean all the difference between two professionals, but there is another important determinant to consider: the function of time. Time constantly brings new knowledge, standards and practices to the table, making it absolutely necessary for talents to keep up with these advancements in order to continue providing value to their company. Having a good long term training strategy and identifying key areas for further growth and development will help a company get the highest return on its investment in talented human capital.

Conclusion

Talent management is essential for any company aiming to make long term success in the global marketplace. The asset which ultimately creates value, builds brands and boosts competitiveness is the people. In the initial talent selection, top managers and HR staff must identify talent-specific competencies, align them with company strategy, support them through effective leadership, and provide well-designed training to ensure these professionals provide maximum performance.

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