Progressive strategies in talent management – how talent professionals are adding value

I have been privileged in the last couple of years or so to have several conversations with respected professionals in human resources, learning and development and talent management.  In every case, I have asked them three key questions:

1. What is your philosophy on talent?
2. What are you doing in talent management that might be considered progressive?
3. What benefits are you seeing as a result?

I have to say that the answers I’ve been getting are not at all what I was expecting.

In answer to the first question, I was expecting a range of answers ranging from “as long as our people are competent in what they do we’re happy” to “it is essential to play to the strengths of individuals”.  I have to say how surprised I have been to discover that professionals who think deeply about the subject of talent seem to be very close when it comes to their prevailing philosophy.  If I had to sum up the (vast) majority view, it would be something like this:

We recognise that all our people are different, with different talents and strengths.  We aim to tap into this gold and put it to good use in our organisation.  Of course we also need to make sure people have the essential skills for the job and don’t make costly mistakes but we try to focus on what’s positive and manage round people’s weaknesses rather than trying to create clones.  We also believe that our people need to own their own talent and take responsibility for their careers.  The organisation will establish processes that support this and we will train our managers to be good facilitators but the responsibility lies with each individual.

In answer to the second question, I was expecting to hear about some pretty classy systems and processes but I have learned that progressive does not mean complex.  In fact the things talent managers do that seem to have the most impressive impact seem to be logical and commonsense, although I have learned about some novel approaches too.  Key fundamentals seem to be about putting a lot of emphasis on recruiting the best people and investing in their development.  There is also a strong effort to promote a talent culture which seems to stem from two key threads:  training managers to be great talent facilitators and providing a forum for senior managers to discuss key talent and opportunities to make best use of these people in the corporate interest.

The more novel approaches I have heard about include allowing any member of staff to train others in the things they’re best at (even outside company needs) and staging company end-of-year pantomimes where staff get to demonstrate skills that wouldn’t be seen in their day-to-day work.

To the third question, the answers range from a general raising of the talent profile to concrete performance gains.  The two key performance indicators that get quoted most often are a reduction in attrition rates (in other words people are most likely to stay with an employer if their talent is recognised and used) and an increase in internal senior appointments – which seems to stem from the conversations senior managers are having about their talented staff.

I always ask my interviewees if they are happy to express a view about talent liberation, the philosophy which is best described as follows:

Organisations reach prime performance when they recognise, value, develop and use the unique talents of all their people in the delivery of their objectives.

Everyone I have spoken to so far has been very positive and encouraging about the talent liberation philosophy.  They like the four stage process for making the most of talent (recognise, value, develop and use).  They love the concept of reaching prime performance, suggesting it is right at the heart of their chief executive’s agenda.  They like the inclusive reference to “all their people” which is the opposite of many talent management perceptions.  And finally, one learning and development director in investment banking said the qualifying words “in the delivery of their objectives” were essential.  For him, talent liberation was great as long as it didn’t become “talent anarchy”.

Talent liberation - stock take

Well, what a year 2008 turned out to be for Talent Liberation. As well as the obvious initial texts and client-facing work, we launched this site in the Autumn, and almost immediately after that I was in Malawi with our African Talent Team member Christophe Horvath. Christophe joined me on our three-week talent tour, taking in client meetings, taster sessions and two keynote slots at the Institute of People Management (Malawi) or IPMM at the beginning of November. 

The highlight of the tour has to be the interest not just from the corporates but especially from the not-for-profit sector, including one institution soon to be named who want to work with us on a project "to liberate the talent of Malawi". This ambitious project will start in the corporate sector, initially with CEOs in April but then progress in partnership with NGOs etc to bring talent liberation to people in villages. Exciting stuff!

As if Malawi wasn't exciting enough, the following month (December) I was in Dubai with the directors of the Global Leadership Alliance (GLA). This influential group of people represent best-in-class learning and development consultancies from every part of the globe. They had indicated in Bangkok in May 08 that they were looking for a discipline to major in and promote for 2009. I was flattered and encouraged when they provisionally named TL as that topic.

I had to present the proposal for TL to the board of GLA in Dubai and it was accepted subject to satisfactory progress against plan by June 2009. They have also begun to nominate their members of the talent team to work with me so expect to see an international group emerge this month.

So in a nutshell, 2009 will be the big year. The new talent team will be getting up to speed to practitioner level and paving the way for a more formal accreditation process to be approved by GLA in the summer.

This means I'll be venturing into online tutorials, podcasts, webcasts and video-tutorials to support the new team.

GLA will also be sponsoring me to write a more robust text book plus practitioner guides and participant guides. They are also developing a number of supporting products to make group work more fun, participative and effective. Watch this space.

Also, dialogue with organisations and other consultancies is progressing well. I have already had recorded interviews with CIPD, ASDA, BT, Mind Gym, Bradford University, Real World Group, TATA Group and Bernados. Once the video and audio recordings are approved they'll be available to visitors to this site.

For 2009, I have interviews lined up with Google, GMG, CocaCola, KIA Cars, Deutsche Bank, SHL, Boyden, IBC, AEG, Network Rail, Cranfield University, Belbin, Tube Lines, British Library, Richer Sounds and others. If you know of others who would be interested in expressing views on Talent Management & Talent Liberation, please let me know.

So it's going to be a busy year - but amongst it all, I do promise to blog more often.

Happy 2009 to all readers, Clive.

fab

Reflection - one of four ingredients in the recipe for personal growth

The cycle of human consciousness I promote as a simple formulae for a fulfilling life is as follows:

1.  Connection:  taking time out to be alone at one with ourselves and the universe allows us to connect and live our life with presence.
   
2. Presence:  being fully conscious and grounded in all we do, being there in the moment for everyone we meet.
3. Right action:  resulting from being fully present, at other times we react in reflex and unconscious manner.
4. Reflection:  allowing us to learn from what worked and what didn’t.  Looking back we can see very clearly when we acted with presence and whether our time in connection helped.

 In this article, I’d like to spend some time considering the last step of the cycle, reflection.

 cycles of reflection

 Let’s take stock of the times when we have reflected.  Our reflection often goes in cycles.  It is often unnoticed.  The more we are aware of our reflection, the more powerful it becomes.

daily cycles

We naturally reflect on a daily basis, sometimes at the end of the day, maybe sitting by the fire, perhaps as we lie in bed before we drift off to sleep.  Sometimes it even happens first thing in the morning, especially if the night before was hectic or even wild.  If we are wise, perhaps we take time out at lunchtime to be alone or to share thoughts of the morning with our colleagues and friends.

weekly cycles

Then, there are the weekly cycles.  In most faiths there is a weekly opportunity to give thanks and also to confess wrongdoings.  But even if we do not belong to a particular denomination, we might still have a special day of the week for reflection and appreciation.  Perhaps we simply sit down with our family and friends for a special weekly meal.  In my home, Sunday lunch is very special and there is both reflection on the week gone by as well as sharing plans for the one to come.

monthly cycles

Monthly reflection happens too.  Perhaps we give ourselves structure by formally making a monthly report or even something as mundane as an expenses return.  Maybe as we’re claiming expenses for a journey, we will pause to reflect whether it was indeed a good journey.  Or perhaps we plan our diaries on a monthly basis, taking tasks from our list and putting them into real time slots.

annual or seasonal cycles

Then of course there are the annual or seasonal cycles.  I find that during summer holidays I often find a quiet spot in an inspiring place and just reflect on my life in general.  What’s working and what isn’t?  Similarly in the winter at the end of one year and in anticipation of the one to come.  Was that a good year?  What will I build on?  What will I do more of?  What must I stop doing?

opportunistic times

And then there are other more ad-hoc or fluid times such as on journeys.  Over the years, I have probably reflected more on trains and in airport lounges than anywhere else.

big reflections

Finally there are what I call the “big reflections”.  Just before passing my job as MD at Primeast to my friend and colleague, Russell, I spent a few days in the mountains at Chiang Mai in Thailand.  I meditated, which of course is more about connection than reflection.  But I also reflected on a phase of my life that was ending.  What had worked that I could celebrate?  What could I have done differently?  Was I even doing the right thing by moving on?

helping each other to reflect

We can help each other reflect by sincerely asking things like, “How’s your day been?” Or, if we haven’t seen someone for a while, perhaps we ask about their year or their summer and so on.  Sometimes our questions are more context based, asking about the person’s job or family. 

When we engage with people in this way, the manner of our engagement is really important.  Usually when we ask how someone’s day has been, we do so simply as a matter of courtesy.  Are we aware that the same question asked in sincerity and with a follow-up question or comment can really help them to take stock and perhaps celebrate something they’ve achieved?  Try it.  Just on your own, rehearse a simple question like, “How’s the job going?”  Feel the difference between the throw-away comment and the sincere expression if interest.

providing structure

If we’re in a position to do so, we can provide structure for ourselves and for those around us for more reflection time.  I’ve done a bit of this, such as encouraging shared meals at work and at home.  I’m even a fan of monthly reporting at work because it keeps us focussed and doing the right things.  For me, I consciously make the most of journeys as described above.

doing more

But even writing this article has grown my awareness.  I hope it’s done the same for you.  What more can we do to consciously create opportunities for ourselves and others?

Here are the thoughts that are emerging for me:

• I will enjoy even more the opportunities I can provide for family, friends and colleagues to eat and share reflective time together
• I will encourage reflection through my work on the Sacred Space project (see below)
• I will take time to be alone in the countryside and in meditation
• When I reflect I will capture the ideas that emerge and act on them
• I will recognise reflective time for what it is and appreciate it a whole lot more

keep in touch

If you find this article meaningful, please share your comments with me and others.  Let me know what you think and do encourage others to engage as well.

Sacred space is a project that promotes awareness in human consciousness. 

http://sacred-space.ning.com/

Conscious Resolutions

It’s New Year’s Day and like so many people, I’ve been thinking about resolutions.  I’ve made a few and many of them are the same as last year: drink less, eat fewer sweets, exercise more and so on.  From the people I speak with, it seems these are in the world’s top ten resolutions anyway.

 

So I wondered if maybe a different approach to resolutions might work.  There’s only one way to find out.  Let’s give it a go.

 

So today, I share with you a new method for making resolutions based on my limited knowledge of human consciousness.  If it works, I’ll write a book on it and make a fortune and make a lot of people happy.  The latter of course is the real reason for my thinking of course.

 

I wonder if the reason we fail in our resolutions is because we think about them too much.  You know, someone asks you what you’ll change and you think about the question and then you think about your answer.  Notice the emphasis on the word “think”.

 

Thinking is maybe the wrong method.  After all, didn’t Einstein suggest that we “cannot solve a problem from the same consciousness that created it”.  Ah, the clue!  It’s that word consciousness again.  It seems that the secret to everything powerful in life is linked to consciousness.

 

I’ve been studying consciousness for about the last decade or so and I’ve reached some definite conclusions:

 

1. We are all connected at a deep conscious level and at this level we are collectively and individually programmed to be successful.  That’s how we evolve and why life survives even when conditions change.
2. To tap into our deep consciousness we have to take time out from the cares and problems of day-to-day living.  We have to unclutter our minds from thinking so we can be in touch with who we really are.  That’s how Buddha got to be enlightened and why Jesus took time out to be “with his father”.
3. When we are in touch with our deep consciousness, we are more likely to live with presence.  In other words we behave in a positive and constructive way consistent with our true nature.
4. If we are present, we take right action, probably consistent with the resolutions we’d love to keep.

 

So, back to resolutions.  The best resolution for me (with my goals in mind) is probably not to aim for the goals directly but to resolve to take time out to connect with my true self each day (through meditation, prayer, a quiet bath or a walk in the countryside).  In a more connected state, I will naturally be more present and do the right things.  But just to check, maybe I’ll check in with myself each evening to see how I’m doing.

 

And if I really want the best resolutions to write down in back of my planner, perhaps the best way is to ask the universe or God (they’re the same anyway) what they should be when I’m in an uncluttered state.  I can even ask that the answer be given to me a bit later when my sub-conscious has had time to process the data.  That way, perhaps I’ll get the resolutions I need rather than the ones I think I should have.

 

Whatever your resolutions turn out to be, I wish everyone who reads this a cracking year.