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Is Talent Management an HR issue or a business issue? In my opinion it is the latter. How do you build the right brand to attract talent? My advice is to make sure that building the right brand to attract, develop and retain talent is discussed at board room level to ensure your future business success. Rather than a campaign based strategy it is an ongoing business strategy. Let me give you a few examples on how employer brand and talent is related to business strategies that I encountered in my day to day work as a solutions consultant at LinkedIn.
1) Opening up a new office location
From an IT service centre in Eastern Europe, a Customer Success Centre in Asia, or the newest hotel to be opened in Dubai; if you are thinking about opening up an office in a new location you know you need the right talent to make it successful. More often than not human assets are a big part of the P&L of an organization. Therefore I would evaluate your brand perception and available skills in market while you are building your business case. Answers to these questions could help you generate more revenue or prevent your organisation in making additional costs. Here are some talent management questions that I would ask:
Market - What skills are available
Location - Do people easily relocate to this country/city
Workforce - How many graduates are joining the market every year
Competition - How many other companies are opening or seeking the same skills
Localization vs globalization – How do you compete for talent locally and globally
2) Revenue growth
In addition to opening up offices in different cities/countries, many commercial organizations are planning for future growth. In order to hit these business goals and generate 20% top-line growth or triple your revenue by 2020, your employees are again your most important asset. It is good to evaluate how employees contribute to the extra revenue generated and not only to the cost associated with hiring. Qualified employees generate more revenue and thus contribute more to your business goals.
The above examples are just two scenarios where talent plays a key part and the combination of employer branding with talent is the foundation for success. Do not automatically assume that employer branding is equal to being a well-liked consumer brand, as a successful consumer brand will mean that people enjoy consuming your products. But do they really know what it is like to work for you? Invest in both your consumer as well as your employer brand to grow your market share, not as a one-of campaign but as an ongoing business strategy.
We are still at the beginning of 2017, so I encourage you to take a step back to look at your 2020 goals or 2025 road map and think how Talent Management is going to help your business succeed and how your brand is of influence in making this happen.
Marlene De Koning is the Senior Solutions Consultant & Teamlead at LinkedIn and along with Alfonso Auñón García, Global People Capability Manager Procurement at Heineken will share a case study and insights at World Employer Branding Day 27-28 April 2017 | Budapest in how LinkedIn is being leverage in Heineken's latest campaign to build a market leading employer brand.