HR SPECIAL.................... GROW YOUR OWN TALENT

GROW  YOUR OWN  TALENT   Organisations ought to start investing in their  employees The evolution of HR practices is likely to see a greater focus on developing HR strategies to grow and sustain talent in the organisation. In order to establish a talent strategy, it is important for organisations to define what talent means to them. Clearly, one organisation's talent is not the same as another organisation's talent. Talent strategies that are  unique to the organisation will be sources of sustaining  competitive advantage.  Talent is as unique as the organisation's strategy, and when the fit is right, talent thrives, people flourish and the business strategy comes alive delivering the organisation's goals. At the centre of a successful talent strategy is the relentless focus on purpose and alignment of all processes to this. Once an organisation establishes its unique definition of talent, it can align all its HR processes to meet the talent development needs. In equal measure, it is important to  keep he business horizon and business-model complexity  in view, while establishing the talent strategy.  This influences the time required to `ripen' fresh entrants  into meaningful talent. Organisations should establish an integrated talent  management approach, which defines, identifies and  engages talent, such that every HR process speaks to each  other. The degree of transparency and formality of talent management practices influences how employees view  themselves and the organisation, at large. There is no one-size-fits-all approach to acquiring, retaining and developing the right talent. From an employee's perspective, shehe wants to continuously have a better CV (Curriculum Vitae). A CV becomes stronger by gaining experience, becoming more developed or by achieving a higher level. Organisations must provide every employee a holistic nurturing and nourishing environment where there are periodic development inputs, challenging assignments, and an opportunity to make great friends and build strong bonds and relationships with colleagues and the organisation. The goal should be to create opportunities for every  employee  to discover their potential and continuously  push their own limits to achieve greater heights. Recruit, train, sustain and retain young talent from various campuses and cross disciplines such as engineering, management, law, finance, environment science, secretarial, safety, etc. This approach enables the creation of a critical  mass of young talent available for organisational  requirements across functions.Adopt a “farming“ versus “hunting“ approach in talent acquisition for the organisation  and the cadre management function is a key enabler for this. Be committed to growing talent primarily from within the organisation, in order to meet the technical, managerial and leadership requirements. Towards this goal, it is  essential to deploy a fair, contemporary and credible system of performance management which goes through a process of continuous improvement. There is an appraisal step redressal  mechanism in place to handle grievances related  to the process. Capability development of employees at all levels forms a critical part of the nurturing and nourishing environment that the organisation provides. Relevant interventions should be designed to build leadership, managerial and technical capabilities in the organisation based on a roadmap. Inputs for capability development should also be taken from various HR processes like performance management, functional competency mapping, senior leader career discussions, 360 degree surveys, high potential management and succession management. The author is chief HR officer, Tata Power

Chetan Tolia

ETAS27OCT15