The second thing is once you've identified where those talent pools are that make
the biggest difference is, what's our talent management system look like?
Are we cultivating that talent, bringing it in, growing it,
putting it in the right positions and making sure that it's driving performance?
How we think about the talent management system is a whole series of practices,
how we source the talent, how bring it in and create an assimilation.
How we develop them over time through job assignments, coaching, or formal training,
the career management, the performance management, the reward systems,
both monetary and in terms of recognition, social kinds of things.
Engagement and then retaining these, this is a talent cycle and
it shows all the pieces that have to work together.
Now the robustness, the functionality of this talent system
can be evaluated by the managers who use it.
A very simple rating system we have managers do all the time is on a one to
five scale, rate how effective each of these practices is for
getting the talent you need to execute your strategy.
You can say this example, they're some in some places and maybe weaker in another.
Obviously, want you want is a system that everything is working well together.
The system is mutually reenforcing and driving and developing that talent.
The functionality of the system really is about are the processes useful and usable?
You can have some fantastic talent management systems,
the managers just don't find usable, it's maybe too complex or unclear, and
so the functionality is do the managers who implement it feel like it's useful?
The second is the system mutually reinforcing?
If your training programs are focusing on creativity and customer service and your
reward system is rewarding efficiencies, they may fall into each other in conflict.
The mutual reinforcement of that talent system is very, very important.
Finally, does it produce those A players in those A positions,
the strategic talent that is there to drive the business forward.
The best organizations, they know this, and they are very intentional
about placing those best performers in those key positions.
In other organizations, it's maybe a hit or a miss.
Now one caution is that the real success of the talent management
is it not just that the leader and managers are driving the results,
we need to look at the long term effects of how they get those results.
In some organizations, you could see a short term hit the numbers but
really do it in a way that destroys the culture,
destroys the engagement of those on the team.
Both are important, this overall functionality of the talent system
is necessary for making sure the organization has all of the leaders and
managers necessary for execution.