Faye Holland, Managing Director of SharedXpertise, organisers of the HRO Today Forum Europe
As workforce competitiveness, employee engagement and social media continue to drive their industry, today’s recruiters need to develop a strategic approach to building their workforce in order to maintain an edge. Talent acquisition, recruitment outsourcing and changing lifestyles have all undoubtedly changed dramatically in recent years. It’s essential that recruiters are able to understand and work within the environment of competitive workforces and varying skills gaps without compromising the optimisation of their workforces.
While many of these industry changes were originally driven by the recession, they are here to stay. Rather than seeing these trends as problems that must be solved, recruiters should look upon them as opportunities for talent management to prove its worth and confirm its place at the heart of the business.
A successful workforce planning strategy is crucial to this, and should be made up of three stages; reviewing, planning, and measurement. In the first instance, it is important to undertake a review of your needs and the talent that you already have access to, both within your business and in existing external talent pools. Networking and communication technologies now enable organisations to manage their talent with greater insight, flexibility and efficiency than ever before. From developing highly targeted talent pools to fill vacancies as they open up, to providing insight into employee performance and identifying the leaders of the future, today’s technology has the potential to significantly improve the way talent management is approached by businesses of all sizes.
From here, you can identify the skills gaps which still remain within your business and develop a resourcing plan, focused around critical roles. These are not necessarily just senior positions, but those which keep the business moving forward. Where skills gaps exist, identify ways to address them. Can you train or reassign current staff, or will it be necessary to recruit new talent who already possess the relevant skills? A workforce planning strategy must be ongoing, incorporating talent pipelines and future needs. A strong plan is an essential part of protecting your business in the event that key personnel choose to move on.
Finally, it is essential to measure the success of your actions. Ensure that you have access to the relevant data to help you review the success of your plan and make changes where necessary to address the continual needs of your business. Data will also help you to share your vision with senior decision makers and hiring managers across the wider business, and gain their support. Comprehensive talent management should be a priority not just for HR, but for the entire business.
This topic and others will be debated as part of the ‘Building Your Workforce’ track of this year’s HRO Today Forum Europe, which takes place in London from the 12th– 14th November. For more information and to register, please visit http://www.hrosummits.com/hrosummiteu/
