The War For Talent Continues
Business leaders are deeply concerned about attracting and keeping talent, judging by two McKinsey Quarterly global surveys. According to McKinsey, the first 2006 study indicated that respondents believe finding talented people will be the single most important managerial preoccupation for the rest of this decade. The second study, conducted in November 2007, revealed that nearly half of those polled expect intensifying competition for talent “and the increasingly global nature of that competition” to have a major effect on their companies over the next five years. No other global trend was considered nearly as significant.
Executives must constantly rethink the way their companies plan to attract, motivate, and retain employees, the firm says. McKinsey adds however, that three evolving external factors are now forcing organizations to take talent more seriously: demographic change, globalization, and the rise of the knowledge worker. Executive search firm, A.E. Feldman, notes that recruiting and retaining top talent has become a high priority at top firms.
A decade ago, a study entitled “The War for Talent conducted by McKinsey & Co found that the most important corporate resource over the next 20 years will be talent: “smart, sophisticated businesspeople who are technologically literate, globally astute, and operationally agile.” The report also found that as the demand for talent increased, the supply of it would be going down. Today, McKinsey & Co. says the War for Talent continues.”
Robust talent systems and processes for recruiting, developing, and retaining employees was emphasized by McKinsey & Co research ten years ago. The 1997 report states, “The search for the best and the brightest will become a constant, costly battle, a fight with no final victory. Not only will companies have to devise more imaginative hiring practices; they will also have to work harder to keep their best people. At the end of the day, we bet on people, not strategies.”
Today, McKinsey says these ideals remain at the heart of any successful talent strategy. The firm adds however, that experience over the past decade shows that companies must do much more to ensure their access to a sufficient supply of talented people.
Intensifying demographic, macroeconomic, and technological changes are changing the business landscape. McKinsey concludes that companies must view talent management as a business priority, and senior executives must invest significant amounts of time in creating strategies that attract, motivate, and retain talent. The group outlines specific ways firms can do just that.
Target talent at all levels. McKinsey says that top talent is more effective when operating within a vibrant internal network with a range of employees
Expand value propositions. Ten years ago, McKinsey stressed the importance of defining and communicating a powerful employee value proposition, such as advancement opportunities, inspiring missions or flexible schedules. Today, the firm finds that while many organizations now use such a proposition, most have just one. McKinsey says that firms seeking to hire and retain top talent, they must meet a range of different values, ambitions, and expectations.
