Topic 4 - What is talent management? Flashcards
What possible business strategies can a company have? How do they impact HR?
Cost leadership: lowest prices => outperform
HR: high monitoring, easy tasks, repetitive tasks
Differentiation strategy: outperform by differentiating yourself from competitors
HR: training opportunities, highly competent employees
Focus strategy: focus on a niche/segment and tailor product to satisfy their needs (e.g., Surinam airways that only does one route from Surinam to Amsterdam or Toyota Prius the first hybrid card when not many wanted that)
From which approach does strategic HRM stems from?
Contingency approach.
From business strategy to HR practices and outcomes: HR is essential in achieving strategic goals.
Desired competitive strategy => required employee’s skills and behaviours => Supportive HR practices => HR outcomes
E.g.: Aldi – Consistently customer (so customer loyalty) => excellent customer service and high quality => attract best employees though superior value proposition (e.g., higher compensation) + focus on development (for innovation) + tie rewards to customer satisfaction => high performers, innovative + strong customer orientation.
Define talent management terms from most to least abstract
TM principles/philosophies: value, beliefs and norms regarding talent andTM
TM policies:TM objectives and strategies
TM programs:specific sets/bundles formal TM practices (or)
TM practices:single practices such as talent development or selective assessment.
What are talent philosophies?
Assumption and belief about nature (what do you think it is), value (how important it is for the organization) and instrumentality (how can we use it) of talent held by a firm’s key decision-maker.
Influence choices on TM policies/programs/practices (and resource allocation) =>influences effectiveness in talent management
What do Meyers & Van Woerkom state about talent philosopies?
There are four of them based on the innate/stable vs development and exclusive vs inclusive approaches
What are the 4 talent philosophies according to Meyers & van Woerkom, 2014
War for talent (Innate/stable + exclusive): focus on identifying, attracting and retaining the few talented individuals. Buy not make talent.
Nature-Nurture interactions (Developable + exclusive): focus on developing the few individuals with potential.
Everyone has a talent (Innate + inclusive): focus on identifying and deploying each person’s (unique) talents
Everyone can become a particular talent (developable + inclusive): focus on developing each person’s (unique) talents. Talent identification across the workforce, increasing person-job fit to allows strengths use and manage around weaknesses.
What are the pros and cons of the War for talent approach?
Opportunities:
Outperform competition through superior human resources: if you focus on the starts (and the competition doesn’t), you attract them
Optimal resource allocation to star employees (e.g., more compensation or benefits): ensures performance. Also helps with retainment.
Retention of star employees: feel valued and appreciated.
Challenges
Valid talent assessment: very difficult. Done incorrectly => resource misuse
Scarcity of talent creates competition: does it fit with organizational culture? Do you want it or not?
Negative effects on employees outside of talent pool:
What are the pros and cons of the Nature-nurture approach?
Opportunities (potential):
Optimal return on training investment: invest only on specific people so are more likely to get returns.
Transfer talent from one domain not another (adaptability): when you assess potential you also assess adaptability and learning agility.
If people score, they can transfer their talent to other tasks.
Tap broad and diverse labour pools to grow your own (hidden) talent: give people more time to grow into their potential => can uncover big talent that would have been otherwise missed.
Gives way to more diverse talent (potential in someone you would not expect)
Challenges: the big challenge is valid potential assessment. If it is not done correctly cannot build on the opportunities.
Talent assessment biases.
What are the pros and cons of the everyone is talent approach?
Opportunities: Create positive attribution about talent management: everyone benefits form it => increase employee well-being, motivation commitment and performance.
Easier to make talent management positive for people when it’s inclusion.
Challenges:
Preventing fixed mindsets: miss developmental opportunities. Assumes everyone is just the way that they are so people are less likely to wish to change.
Attraction and retention of key employees: more attracted to competitors with exclusive TM).
What are the pros and cons of the everyone has a particular talent approach?
Opportunities:
Creating growth mindsets: everyone wants to become better and grow
Increasing learning and performance due to creating positive expectations. Pygmalion effect: if you tell people they are capable/show high expectations they internalize it => better performance and learning)
Growing relevant talent from within
Challenges:
Training budget restriction: is it feasible to train everyone?
But Pygmalion effect shows that just saying you believe in people it increases performance => does not need to be that expensive to increase performance.
Motivation for continuous learning: can people really be motivated to continuously wish to learn?
Not everyone is interested in learning and grown => what do you do? Should make sure it fits with the types of job (e.g., repetitive work => development makes no sense)
What are the other perspectives regarding talent management?
Exclusive vs inclusive + people vs positions: People vs positions: emphasis on identifying key position that can impact competitive advantage of the firm (positions) or emphasis on identifying talents in employees and then finding a fighting position
Exclusive-inclusive + company vs individual responsibility.
Framework:
Hipo’s (exclusive + company responsibility)
Big Mama/Supportive parent (inclusive + company responsibility)
It’s up to you (inclusive + individual responsibility): everyone has talent, but we need to develop it or find it ourselves.
The lonesome ranger (exclusive + individual responsibility): only a few people have talent but you need to develop yourself.
But it’s not always black and white. Can have in between positions (hybrid TM)
What is Collings & Mellahi (2009) view on Strategic talent management?
Strategic Exclusive Talent Management. Give out the steps:
Identifying key/A positions: HR differentiation (between roles). Focus on positions rather than players to get a return and drive sustained competitive advantage. Do not overinvest in non-strategic roles (average impact =/= marginal impact => despite something being highly valuable, increasing it will not do much in increasing its value. )
Develop Talented Pool ( pool of high potential and high performing employees that the organization can use to fill pivotal talent positions) Need to differentiate between strategic and non-strategi performers. Based on potential. Shift from vacancy led recruitment to recruitment ahead of the curve (find best people then find positions for them)
Develop a differentiated HR architecture (workforce differentiation): those in talent pool get more resources than the others. Based on Value and uniqueness
How to develop a talent pool?
Identify talent pool => organization develop them to fill pivotal positions. Shift from vacancy led recruitment to recruitment ahead of the curve: identify proactively those with potential (internal or external recruitment) to fill key positions which can become available.
So first recruit the best people and then find positions for them => better organizational performance.
What are the four categories of human capital
Framework (based on value and uniqueness):
Knowledge-based employees (valuable+ unique): potential to contribute to strategic objectives => emphasis on internal development and long-term commitment.
Job-based employees (value but not unique): internally employed, transferable.
Contract work (not valuable or unique): outsourcing.
Alliances/partnerships (unique but not enough strategic value to employee internally)
What are HR practices bundles that ensure commitment?
job rotation and showing, coaching and mentoring, promotion opportunities, assessment centre, actional learning sets, courses at external institutions, graduate development programmes.
What is Strategic inclusive TM?
FITM [fully inclusive talent management]: All employees have talent => Should evaluate and place them in positions that give the best fit and opportunity (via participation) for employees to use those talents.
if talents are below average the organizations should assist the employee to deploy their talents elsewhere.”
Theoretical base:
Positive psychology
Capabilities approach
What are the steps for FITM?
Identify talent (in all employees) focus on people not positions.
Deployment of employees in fitting positions: from recruitment to development and training an then career planning/coaching (feet forward interviewing) and performance appraisal and management (for strengths and weaknesses)
Career transition support (for when there is an ill fit): help employees move elsewhere (e.g., if my talent is teamwork but the company is too small). Also aids with employee branding.
Can you combine talent management methods?
Yes. Hybrid strategic talent management.
Mostorganizations in practice are more in the middle: hybrid strategic management(combine elements of different philosophies)
Is Hybrid TM the best of both worlds?
Inclusive and exclusive are not mutually exclusive. Can use exclusive for key positions/talent pools but appreciating unique strengths of all employees and try to enhance the fit between it and their positions. Not that much research on it.
