Even in a period of high unemployment, businesses all over the country are still struggling to increase employee retention. The vast majority have been hit with extended vacancies within their company. Clearly, external pressure doesn’t keep people from leaving their jobs behind.
The problem with low employee retention is that it tends to create a negative feedback loop. Companies grow desperate to fill vacant positions and hire people who may be less qualified or less interested in the job. This makes them more likely to leave after a short period of time.
Talent management can solve many of the issues associated with low employee retention. In fact, incorporating talent management into your business can turn things around for your entire company.
Read on to learn more about what talent management is and why it’s important for any business.
What Is Talent Management?
Talent management typically falls under the umbrella of HR services. One key difference is that it also heavily involves the company manager, as well.
The objective of talent management is to recruit, hire, train, and retain candidates. More importantly, it allows companies to seek out the most qualified candidates.
Talent management allows you to start with the best and brightest and give them the tools to excel. Investing in employees in a clear way eases feelings of discomfort or unpreparedness. It also boosts morale and gives your employees a reason to stay.
How Can Talent Management Improve Your Business?
Talent management isn’t just a program that you implement on the side. It is a comprehensive approach to conducting a business. Let’s take a look at some of the tangible ways that talent management can improve your business.
Talent Management Is an Integrated Business Strategy
When you adopt the talent management model, it affects the way that your business is structured. As we mentioned earlier, it’s not a program that you can direct your employees to upon request. It’s an on-going and ever-present business strategy.
It’s important to make the distinction between talent management and HR-driven hiring. Like HR-driven hiring, talent management does begin at the recruitment phase. HR teams up with the company manager to:
- Establish the criteria of a position
- Establish the qualities you want to see in a candidate
- Go over nitty-gritty details like salary
However, once hiring is complete, talent management continues, starting with the training process. After training is complete, a company that adopts the talent management strategy:
- Remains invested in their employees’ success and growth
- Provides learning opportunities
- Provides opportunities for promotions
- Handles beneficial transfers and other changes
This gives each employee a clear sense of direction and focus throughout their entire career.
Talent Management Is Flexible
There is no single way to approach talent management. You can mold your talent management to your company’s specific needs.
For example, some companies may apply their talent management strategy to every single employee they hire. This allows every employee, from top to bottom, a chance to take on new responsibilities and growth within their job.
Other companies, however, may only employ their talent management strategy under certain circumstances. This allows managers to determine which positions are expected to lead to upward mobility and which positions require less oversight. This is often a useful approach for larger companies or smaller companies with limited resources.
Talent Management Increases Employee Engagement and Satisfaction
One of the best ways to increase both employee retention and productivity is to increase engagement. One of the easiest ways to hinder employee engagement is to make them feel undervalued.
The talent management strategy relies heavily on manager involvement. HR is not the only department handling employee concerns, training opportunities, or promotions.
Instead, the manager takes a hands-on approach with employees. This breaks down the barrier that often exists between a manager and their employees.
Developing a supportive relationship between a manager and employee can generate positive attitudes. That relationship allows employees to share their ideas and receive feedback from their boss. In turn, this makes employees feel seen and valued.
The goal is to make your employees feel like their success matters to those who are in charge. This is a great way to keep everyone engaged and satisfied with their work.
Talent Management Makes Your Business Competitive
The job hunt is extremely competitive, and not just for the candidates who are wading through the application process. It’s hard to hire the best and brightest when other companies have more to offer.
Adopting a talent management strategy makes your business far more competitive. Why?
Most driven candidates don’t want to hop around from company to company in order to achieve their goals. They’re looking for a position that comes with opportunities for upward mobility. They’re looking for an employer who wants to challenge them to learn new skills and take on new responsibilities.
From the moment you interview a candidate, you can inform them that you will commit your time, energy, and resources to their growth. Can you back up those claims with a clear, detailed talent management strategy? This will instantly make your company more appealing than others.
Leave Those Days of Low Employee Retention Behind
What we’ve seen in the past year is that employee retention is not impacted by external factors. Instead, employee retention comes from what a company has to offer and how it incentivizes employees to stay. By adopting a talent management strategy, you can invest in your employees in ways that make them feel engaged and valued.
Are you looking for more ways that you can tweak your business strategies for the better? Take a look at our business section for tips, tricks, and important industry news to get inspired for positive change.