A new study released today by Taleo Research, part of Taleo Corporation, in conjunction with Business Intelligence, shows that talent management is becoming even more critical for UK businesses as the credit crunch continues, especially when it comes to top performers and employee retention. 89% of respondents indicate that talent shortages are impacting or highly impacting leadership development in their organisations, with 76% of those surveyed expecting the current talent shortage to remain the same or increase (40%) over the next 12 months.
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The research report entitled, ëUnified Talent Management: Critical to UK Businessí, shows that during the current economic downturn, 74% of respondents are seeing an increased need to retain top performers by driving the focus on performance management and career planning. 67% think succession planning and internal mobility programmes can maximise the value from current employees, while 63% report the importance of quality of hire increases in this current climate compared to a high growth period (53%).
Alice Snell, Vice President at Taleo Research comments, ìThe war for talent is intensifying even as the economic downturn continues. In the last ten years staffing and business challenges have changed dramatically. Talent shortages are now much greater than they were in previous economic slowdowns. Today, companies realise how important employees are in enabling them to reach their business goals, especially if they are to prosper in more testing times. Companies are looking for better ways to gain a competitive advantage through talent management processes.î
The research examines the detailed views of 186 UK businesses towards talent management, its impact on business performance, especially in the context of high-pressure economic conditions, and the challenges associated with executing a talent management strategy.
Key findings from the research indicate:
1. The impact of talent shortages continues in an economic downturn
83% are experiencing a strong impact on the businessí ability to innovate
80% report an impact from talent shortages on their growth plans
Talent shortages are impacting the productivity for 72%.
Customer satisfaction is being impacted for nearly two-thirds (63%)
2. Lack of planning still exists
The majority of UK businesses (60%) consider talent management essential for business success
But less than one-third has a documented talent management strategy in place, and 34% have no strategy or plans for one in the next year
3. Taking responsibility
In most cases, talent management strategy is being driven by the executive leadership (44%)
Despite the importance attached to talent management for achieving business goals, only 21% of respondents have a strategy that encompassed the whole workforce. For most, 69%, it is HR and line management that execute talent management strategies, but it is solely HRís responsibility for 21%
A large majority also regard getting managers to accept responsibility for talent management as challenging (53%) or very challenging (41%)
Snell concludes, ìIt is of no surprise that a companyís lack of a talent management strategy is harming businesses development and innovation. What is more worrying is the lack of talent management strategies and unified talent management systems in place, particularly those that encompass the whole workforce and address all of a companyís recruitment and performance management requirements. The executive leadership clearly realises that talent management is an important issue. But they, and the HR function need to bring all the aspects of talent management together into a documented strategy that will get buy-in from every area of the business, if organisations are going to meet their business goals.î
Talent Management Becomes Critical for UK Businesses as UK Economy Slows
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