What is the process of finding and retaining the most qualified employees to help a company reach its goals?

1. Finding a Job
2. What Is Talent Management? (With Processes and Strategies)

By Indeed Editorial Team

Published 30 August 2021

Talent management is an essential procedure that enables organisations to discover the best candidates and assist them in growing professionally and advancing their careers. Be mindful that using efficient talent management techniques can help you retain your most skilled people while also better meeting the objectives of a business. Breaking down talent management into distinct processes might help you gain a better understanding of it. In this article, we look at what is talent management and why it's important, the processes and strategies for effective talent management and the difference between talent management and talent acquisition.

What is talent management and why is it important?

Talent management entails the deliberate process of acquiring, motivating, developing and keeping high-performing personnel. Talent management is a continuous, strategic process that encompasses discovering the proper talent, getting them on board inside an organisation and assisting them in developing and growing their talents while keeping the organisational goals in mind. Talent management includes seven primary components within human resources, encompassing recruiting, onboarding, performance management, compensation planning, succession planning, education and development and workforce planning.

Talent management is crucial since it assists businesses in retaining the most competent and talented personnel. It also assists businesses in developing their workforce to fulfil the demands of the organisation. Finally, talent management is an essential component of the workforce planning process, rendering it crucial for organisational performance.

What is the purpose of talent management?

The goal of talent management is to identify, acquire and retain the individuals who drive the organisation's success. It's a high-priority, strategic procedure for forward-thinking organisations that recognise their performance is dependent on their people. Talent management assists in making staff feel more confident, engaged and motivated, enabling them to work harder toward the organisational objectives. Talent management also encourages staff to stay with an organisation longer, improving retention and minimising costs associated with high turnover.

What are the processes of talent management?

Listed below are the processes that make up talent management:

• Planning the recruiting schedule

• Creating job descriptions for new roles

• Drafting the job ad and posting it on key hiring sites

• Reviewing submitted applicant materials

• Conducting online or phone screenings to discover top applicants

• Holding interviews to determine the best candidate for a role

• Conducting a pre-employment background check

• Making the position available to the best candidate

• Agreeing on a pay and benefits packaging

• Onboarding the new recruit

• Offering training for a specific position

• Establishing performance goals

• Offering mentoring, coaching and feedback

• Providing formal feedback systems and assessment

• Offering professional development opportunities that correspond to the organisational goals

• Assisting staff with career planning

• Promoting and transferring staff based on performance, passion and expertise

• Dismissing employment as needed

What is the talent management model?

A talent management model is a graphical depiction of the steps that businesses take to find, train and develop exceptional individuals. While there's no universal talent management model, the main procedure that businesses follow within the process model is as follows:

1. Planning: Planning is the initial phase which entails determining the organisation's human capital requirements and developing job descriptions to meet those requirements.

2. Attracting: This second stage entails posting the job description on job websites and boards to garner an adequate amount of eligible applicants.

3. Selecting: The third step is to review and interview applicants to select the best candidate for the position.

4. Retaining: The fourth step includes providing chances for advancement, promoting professional development and providing reward programmes and training for higher-level roles.

5. Transitioning: This is the last step of the process whereby the organisation provides retirement benefits, wraps up succession planning and performs departure interviews and assessments, all of which are significant transition tools for both the staff and the organisation.

What are some strategies for effective talent management?

Outlined below are several talent management strategies you can enforce in your organisation:

Draft clear and comprehensive job descriptions

It's critical to write a clear and comprehensive job description to attract and recruit the finest and most qualified individuals for a role. In the job description, remember to include the job title, major duties, needed and preferred abilities, remuneration and benefits, work relationships and any equipment or tools that candidates have to be qualified to utilise. Be mindful that organisational branding is useful to create targeted advertisements. A comprehensive job description can increase your chances of finding an ideal fit for the role.

Assess applicants for cultural fit

It's essential that you evaluate how applicants can fit into the culture of your organisation. In many situations, you can rely on your own best judgement to assess cultural fit. Take notice of the amount of enthusiasm applicants exhibit for the industry and job, the language they use, their tone of voice and the personal beliefs they share as you screen prospects.

You can also plan interviews and other ways of selection to assure that the candidate is the best fit for the role. On top of that, you can opt to employ personality questionnaires, tests and references that necessitate the applicants to answer based on real-life scenarios. This way, you can assess how the staff may perform and react in real-life situations.

Develop a smooth onboarding process

Onboarding entails the process of welcoming and integrating new staff into their new role and your organisation. Effective onboarding doesn't take place only on the new staff's first day, but it's an ongoing process that starts once the candidate accepts the job offer. It's essential that the onboarding process helps staff feel oriented and ready to embark on their new career journey. Listed below are some initiatives you can kick start to build a smooth onboarding process:

• Send a welcome email and packet

• Set up the new staff's workstation

• Issue an announcement to the team to welcome the new staff

• Select who may guide the new staff on their first day

• Choose a buddy or mentor for the new staff

• Set introductory meetings with the relevant parties

• Arrange training sessions

• Schedule ongoing catch-up sessions with the new staff for the first few months of their employment

Related: What Is an Onboarding Process for New Employees?

Provide mentorship and coaching

Staff who receive positive comments and encouragement on a regular basis are frequently happier and more productive in their jobs. To keep your team members motivated, provide positive comments on a regular basis as well as acknowledgement of their work. Try to create a culture of mutual trust between staff and management to enable staff to know that they can come to you or other managers for help.

Promote professional growth

Staff who receive the chance to advance professionally and push themselves are more likely to stay with a company for a long time. Meet with your team members on a regular basis to discover opportunities for growth and improvement. Encourage them to search for chances to improve their abilities outside the organisation or to consider providing training within your organisation to assist your team members in advancing professionally.

Provide a rewards scheme

It's essential for staff to feel valued to be content and productive in their work. Rewards and recognition programmes may help them do so, especially when they go above and beyond the call of duty. If your entire staff outperforms their targets, you may want to consider awarding a bonus. If a single employee outperforms expectations, you may wish to consider a monetary award or a gift.

Provide guidance on the professional career path

Staff members are more likely to stay with a company if they perceive and anticipate long-term professional progress. While it's critical to be open and honest with your staff about future prospects for advancement, you can work closely with team members to discover their talents and strengths. You may also assist them in pursuing a career path that they're passionate about.

Related: How To Find a Rewarding Career Path in 9 Steps

What is the distinction between talent acquisition and talent management?

Although often used interchangeably, these two terms are distinct and provide different, unique meanings. Talent acquisition entails procedures that surround recruiting, selecting and onboarding new personnel. Although the talent acquisition department hires candidates, they've got less authority to terminate employees. As part of your role in talent acquisition, it's essential that you build a strong organisational brand to attract the finest talent. Talent acquisition is basically a part of the talent management process, as talent management encompasses all procedures associated with talent acquisition, as well as those that occur after onboarding, such as performance management and professional development.

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