Total talent management - make it centre stage

Delivering value through your talent

Every serious HR professional is aware that one of the greatest challenges facing the profession today is delivering clear and demonstrable value. HR is no longer an administrative function, it has moved decisively to centre stage with the development of the business partner model. But the corollary of this enhanced status within parent organisations has been a whole new set of pressures and problems.

To make the model work as effectively as possible HR has reached out to a wide range of external partners, outsourcing elements of its remit to experts in such areas as training and development, payroll and of course, recruitment. And in the last area the responsibility of external partners is slowly but surely expanding to cover the whole of the talent management process from acquisition to engagement to development to retention. The logic is simple. What, after all, is the point in building a world class recruitment machine if a significant proportion of hires leave before they can make a useful contribution to the business?

Long-term talent management strategy

The reason why more and more organisations are accepting this logic is a growing realisation that outsourcing is not just a ‘quick fix’ but a long-term strategic tool. And consequently, while cost is still a major driver behind the decision to outsource talent management, there is less expectation of an immediate effect on the bottom line.

As Simon Patton, the HR director who took supermarket chain Somerfield down the outsourcing route puts it: “Of course everyone wants to make savings but they don’t appear on day one. They come over the length of the contract as the supplier gets more embedded within your organisation and gets into a position where they can shape systems and processes to make them more effective.” The key driver now is the desire to find a partner that can help HR deliver a better, more effective service to the business as a whole.

In this context the old, distorted view of an outsourcing specialist as a ‘slash and burn’ operation focused solely on saving money can thankfully be consigned to the dustbin of history. Take for example the way that recruitment outsourcers now work with specialist recruitment agencies. Of course the outsourcer will be conscious of the expense to the client of using such services. But, at the same time, they will also be concentrating on the need to deliver the best possible recruits by whatever means necessary. Price therefore becomes less important than capability.

Talent analysis

This does not mean however that it is ‘business as usual’ for recruitment agencies. What recruitment outsourcers bring to the picture is a much more rigorous examination of who is delivering and who isn’t through data driven vetting and analysis. That means being completely clear as to which suppliers are providing, not just candidates, but the right candidates - individuals who match the specification, accept job offers and then fit into the organisation, stay and contribute.

Under this sort of scrutiny it’s interesting to see how many cosy relationships between agent and employer can come to a very abrupt end. In this more demanding environment there will doubtless be casualties. But for HR functions and the best recruitment consultancies, the new approach can be nothing less than a win-win situation.

Damien Stork, Director, Ochre House

Source: Changeboard

Posted by Damien Stork