2023 was a challenging year for both job seekers and hiring managers alike. There were many variables, some old and some new, from the evolving remote work paradigm to economic driven markers like inflation and stock market induced decision making. The war for top talent is real, and those who study the battlefield to identify and exploit the trends and predictors will prevail in 2024.
Too often leaders focus their talent strategies on attracting and recruiting top talent from industry, academia, competitors, and the government, and don’t recognize the unrefined talent and rising talent they have until it’s gone, they can’t see the uncut diamonds right in front of them.
You Pay Now or Pay Later
People like any other part of your business come with associated costs, and these “costs” should be looked at as investments and not liabilities. Your people are your company and as leaders your people should be your primary investment from both a cultural and an operational perspective. Innovative and creative leaders strive to invest in the current workforce to mentor, guide, train, and coach the leaders of tomorrow in tandem with hiring talent from the outside.
Innovative leaders don’t do this through monetary incentives alone, they don’t just throw money at the problem. There are few examples of simple monetary rewards solving problems or creating enduring solutions. Leaders who see the big picture invest in the workforce through training and development as well as monetary and fringe incentives, “professional development” becomes part of the culture and not a buzz phrase on a job announcement or company webpage.
Have a cost effective, balanced incentive program encompassing realistic and relevant training, development, and monetary aspects to attract and retain top talent.
Have a Talent Management Plan
Talent management, when done correctly, is complex and should be in continuous motion with a focus on recruitment, onboarding, professional development, sustainment, and retention of top talent. Let’s be honest, for most companies the recruitment and onboarding cycles are where the talent management plan ends. They seek to attract and hire talent to then simply pass the new hire employee off to their new first line manager, leaving it up to the manager and the employee to figure it out.
Generally and unsurprisingly, employees are on their own to manage their careers and make their way through developing personal company contacts, searching internal webpages and documents for training and development opportunities, or simply not thriving and growing in their role and ultimately leaving the company.
Without a realistic, relevant, and actionable Talent Management Plan, you are simply going through the motions year after year expecting different outcomes that never come.
Tone at the Top
Highly prosperous and successful companies most often have healthy cultures and positive atmospheres enabled through employee focused Talent Management Plans supported and championed by senior leadership. Ultimately, if people feel like the company invests in them, their career, and their professional development, they get a sense of reward and community and invest back in the company, as a partnership. Savvy leaders, who truly care about the workforce, see the relationship as a partnership and the very foundation for a successful and profitable business.
The saying goes, “you don’t know what you have until it’s gone,” good leaders can spot talent in the recruitment and onboarding phases, but future focused, team building leaders can spot unrefined and emerging talent post onboarding, deep in the far corners of the company. Additionally, these leaders spot, assess, nurture, and develop internal talent that possess the right combination of “attitude and aptitude” to mature, grow, and evolve into the organization’s next generation of leaders.
Don’t know where to start, need help in creating a Talent Management Plan that’s tailored for your workforce?
Reach out today and let’s work together to make 2024 the year your workforce thrives and shines!

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