The Top Ten Development Challenges Facing HRs

- Talent Q research highlights chief HR challenges for the year ahead
- The need to get the best out of current employees is identified as the overriding concern
- Employers urged to adopt a more integrated approach to talent management processes

In a survey by people assessment firm Talent Q, developing high performing teams is cited as the primary challenge facing two-thirds of employers over the coming year. Recognising the increased importance of getting the best out of existing employees during the current economic crisis, the survey also revealed a widespread need to identify and develop potential.

With recession-led redundancies a possibility or already a reality for many companies, succession planning and managing talent through change are also priorities. The flipside of increasing unemployment however, is that half of those taking part in the survey see the ability to select from an increased external talent pool as a major issue.

The Top Ten HR Challenges

Developing high performing teams 66%
Succession planning 55%
Managing talent through change 54%
Finding/sourcing talent externally 51%
Developing high potential 48%
Managing performance 46%
Engaging people 44%
Assessing best talent to join organisation 43%
Identifying high potential 43%
Selecting best for internal moves 42%

Priorities differ considerably depending on the sector. Financial services organisations are unsurprisingly much less focused on sourcing new employees externally, whilst this remains a significant concern in the manufacturing and utilities sectors. Engagement is a priority in the public sector, as are developing high performance teams and identifying talent. Utilities, a sector currently less beleaguered than other sectors, reported identifying potential and managing performance as key issues.
In terms of organisational size, the results suggest that the larger the organisation the greater is the need for effective processes to develop high potential people and high performance teams.

ìIdentifying and developing high performance may have been relatively neglected during the recent ëwar for talentí,î comments Dr Alan Bourne, director of Talent Q. ìBut the new tougher economic environment makes it critical.î

Assessment techniques can play a major role in helping to meet these and indeed all the human resources challenges spotlighted in survey, and are particularly powerful if they are part of an integrated talent management process. Yet it seems many employers are missing a trick here.

As well as outlining the key HR challenges, the survey delved deeper, to review how well companies are geared up to meet these challenges, or not - improving talent management practises is reported as a key development need for over 40% of organisations surveyed.

A major failing is a lack of efficiency in the way that assessment data is gathered though talent management activities. There is evidence of a ëmeasure and file ití mentality with only 22% of respondents currently drawing upon data collected for one purpose (e.g. recruitment) to support development.

ìSignificant gains stand to be made by implementing more joined-up talent management processes,î concludes Dr Alan Bourne. ìGood alignment across the different stages in the talent lifecycle (recruitment, development, successional), offers opportunities to better identify, manage and develop talent. In turn, this signposts the way to improved performance and greater efficiency.î