Critical Talent Issues

Published by Alice Snell, on 13/02/2011

Two important global studies highlight current talent management issues: one at the macro level, the other more granular on the issue of engagement. Both studies saw an increase in concerns around talent competition and retention.

Nine of this year’s top ten issues increased in criticality from 2010, according to The Critical Human Capital Issues of 2011 report from the Institute for Corporate Productivity (i4cp).

The Most Critical Human Capital Issues of 2011

BlessingWhite’s 2011 Employee Engagement Report key findings include:

• Fewer than 1 in 3 employees worldwide (31%) are Engaged. Nearly 1 in 5 (17%) are actually Disengaged. Engagement levels vary by region from 37% in India to 17% in China.
• Despite the rough and tumble of the economic recession, engagement levels around the world remained roughly stable when comparing early 2008 and mid-2010.
• Yet more employees are looking for new opportunities outside their organization than they were in 2008, suggesting that 2011 will be a challenging year for retention (and a hot market for firms looking to attract top talent).

The study especially identifies disengagement issues among IT employees, noting only 26% of Information Technology employees in North America are fully engaged at work. Nearly as many – 22% – are actually disengaged.

Each study may be parsed by location, company size, or job function. Understanding where your organization fits into these study results can inform actions and initiatives throughout 2011. One theme prevails: successful talent management is critical to organizational performance. You have to know your people to grow your business.