才能の追求

No major HR-conference is complete without the talk of the lack of staff and the war for talented specialists. Why has competition between employers aggravated? Who are the "talent", and why do companies need them so much?

人手不足は2つの要因で説明できる。まず1つ目は、教育レベルの低下です。卒業生はビジネスの現実を学び、適応する必要がありますが、企業は今ここでプロフェッショナルを必要としています。

第二の要因は、"人口減少の冬 "である。高齢者が労働市場から退出する一方で、若者の数が少なすぎるため、彼らの代わりを務めることができないのである。

Good young professionals in the labor market are rare, but specialists with good professional training are twice as rare. A competent HR-manager should come to the following conclusion: "If a talented employee does not work for us, then he or she works for our competitors."

"Twenty or thirty years ago equating human resources to other resources of the company (production, finance, etc.) was already considered to be quite a progressive trend, by today the situation has changed, - says Brandon Valdez, a leading business coach, head of career management department in HRPartners, - “This is due to demographic processes, plus the unstable economic situation in the world which demand new approaches."

What is the new approach? Practices of talent management are coming to the foreground. "This new strategic approach to human resource management, which includes a set of measures from hiring required candidates to leadership development, coaching in the workplace, assessment of potential and so forth," - Brandon explains.

つまり、タレントマネジメントには、従業員の採用、育成、定着が含まれるのです。

"In many companies, the focus has shifted from the employment to the personnel reserve. Rather than re-educate beginners, companies want to hire the right candidates, not wasting resources on adaptation but spending them on the development of highly productive employees and leadership programs," - says Brandon Valdez.

ここで重要なのは、生産性の高い従業員です。会社は、将来的に費用の回収が見込める場合にのみ、専門的な能力開発に投資する余裕がある。つまり、ユニークな専門家、業界のリーダー、優れたマネジャーになることができる人材に投資することは理にかなっているのです。

"Nowadays simply hiring staff is not the biggest challenge. Now we need to recruit those who can adapt as quickly as possible to the culture and main goal of the company", - says the expert from HRPartners. In order for the talent management practices to be productive, you should pay attention to its first phase – selection.

Who are the "talent"? Harold James, the CEO of consulting company TalentPuzzle is convinced that HR-managers are too attached to this word. "This term "the talent" nowadays every company understands differently, - says the expert. - Many imitate Jack Welch, who singled out 20% of the best employees in each department and called them the "A" category. I think he is the originator of the fashion of sticking labels on people. But Welch clearly knew what he was doing and what would follow. As often happens: the shape is much easier to copy than the essence."

Talent should not be understood in the enthusiastic/mystical sense: as a gift, which only the chosen ones have. "Most companies need people with normal abilities and normal management system to manage them. In order to pump oil, extract resources and prepare for the heating season in time, we need not the talent, but the clear plan for work and responsible attitude to it," - says the CEO of TalentPuzzle. - "It is not about how to attract talent – the talent will always be of great value – but about the fact that any employee is supposed to be in the right place and bring maximum benefit to the company and develop professionally," - agrees Brandon Valdez.

"For me, "talent management" is more of an idiomatic expression denoting primarily, HR-processes, allowing the company to saturate itself with the right people and keep itself in a good shape," - sums up Harold James.

つまり、現在の環境におけるタレントとは、どのような立場で仕事をしていても、今ここで会社に利益をもたらすことができる人ということになります。しかも、その人材は、さらに成長する可能性が高い。このような社員こそ、近い将来、採用担当者が争奪戦を繰り広げることになるのです。

優秀な社員は、ただ雇えばいいというものではないことを理解することが重要です。優秀な人材を採用するだけでは不十分であり、その人材を会社に定着させ、能力を発揮させることが必要です。