“People are our most important asset.” Is there a more tired, over-used, sound bite known to the corporate world? Is there a quicker way to elicit a collective groan from the rank-and-file than for a leader to utter that phrase?

Well, groan no more because there is a wealth of recent data showing how seriously successful companies are taking talent management and the rewards that those companies are reaping as a result.

• Over 50% of executives who participated in our 2005/2006 Executive Level Organizational Upset Survey said that the number one thing they need to insure the future success of their organizations was Quality Staff.
• 66% of CEOs, included in the Deloitte Fast 500 (an annual ranking of fasted growing companies) said that the key contributor to their growth was High-Quality Employees. This is nearly a 50% increase in the percentage of CEOs who gave the same response last year.
• A 1999 study by Sibson and Company and McKinsey showed a direct link between quality of succession management initiatives and shareholder return.
• The vast majority of top financial performing companies (85% of the top 20 in a field of 373 companies) hold their leaders accountable for developing talent, versus only 46% of leaders from other organizations according to a report from Hewitt Associates.

What is Talent Management?

Talent management means strategically managing the human resources of your organization in order to close the gap between existing talent resources and the leadership requirements of the future. The goal is to ensure that your organization's success is never held back by lack of bench strength.

Achieving this goal requires a systemic and strategic approach to the recruitment, development, promotion and retention of people. Done well, talent management becomes a differentiator – a competitive advantage – allowing your company to demonstrate continuity and agility up and down the organizational chart and to achieve your critical business objectives.

Why is Talent Management a Top Leadership Priority?

There are three main reasons that Talent Management is (or should be) a priority with top leadership:

1. We live in a knowledge-driven, service-based economy in which leadership is the driver of business performance. It is not only what you deliver, but how you deliver it that matters.
2. There is a shrinking talent pool from which to cull the next generation of leaders. Competition for talent is becoming increasingly fierce.
3. CEO turnover has exceeded 300 percent over the past five years and shows no signs of decreasing. Aggressive talent management is essential to demonstrating continuity and consistency at the top and inspiring stakeholder confidence.

Leadership Role in Talent Management

Spotting, nurturing and retaining high potential talent must be a personal priority of the CEO and all other leaders in your organization. Regardless of how technically impressive your talent management processes and tools are, the impact on your bottom line will be minimal without the investment, championing and commitment from the top leadership team.

To follow are the key areas where senior leadership commitment will pay dividends.

• A Solid Start: You need to make sure your strategic goals and business priorities are the starting point for determining your talent requirements.
• Invaluable Input: Bring your intimate knowledge of the key roles within the organization and keen awareness of future leadership needs for emerging roles to the process of creating descriptions of the type and quality of talent you need. Relegate this step entirely to HR and you risk losing a level of refinement that could create a lasting differentiator for your organization.
• Setting the Standard: You can tell what people are committed to by how they spend their time. Leaders need to take a visible role in managing talent. This means you need to spend time articulating performance expectations, observing, giving feedback, coaching and actively participating in other talent management initiatives.
• The Big Picture: As leaders you need to constantly see the forest and the trees. While inculcating a commitment to talent management requires a degree of “management by walking around,” you are also responsible for ensuring that talent initiatives are supporting strategic goals and delivering shareholder value. The end goal is to ensure you have the talent to deliver on the promise of your business.
• You are the Champion: Talent is a strategic priority. As a leader, you need to be a constant champion for those initiatives which drive talent management.

Not Quite So Hot at Your Top?

If talent management hasn't become part of the leadership DNA in your organization, you are not alone. Despite the strong economic drivers for making talent management an integral part of any strategic organizational plan, many CEOs still feel they can relegate the issue to the HR department and a good headhunter.

In the next issue of our newsletter we will discuss how to light the fire at the top and start the culture shift necessary to ensure you have the talent resources you need to succeed today and beyond. Here's a hint … Succession Planning makes talent management very personal, very quickly.