Many organisations do not have a clear definition of talent or a clear TM strategy.

In part three of this series of blogs summarising our 2012 findings into the Future of Talent Management.

Our research found that TM strategies are often not fully defined or understood within organisations. For example, 68% of Leaders said that their organisation has a TM strategy, however only 59% of Leaders understand it and only 52% believe that they have a “clear definition of talent”. A total of 32% said that they do not know or understand their organisation’s TM strategy.

Leaders within different business areas also perceived the success of their organisation’s TM strategy differently. In each instance the Talent Leaders were significantly more positive about the clarity and strategy of the model than the HR or Business Leaders*. See figure 1 to see how the responses differed according to Talent, HR and Business.

It is evident from the findings that there is an opportunity for organisations to more clearly define what talent looks like and clarify their TM strategy. This is supported by The RSA Group’s (executive search firm) 2011 talent research which found that “60% of executives are not convinced that their HR teams have a clear understanding of the business’s long-term skill requirement” (The RSA Group, 2011).

Kaplan and Norton (2008) in the Harvard Business Review suggest that “from time to time managers will discover that some of the assumptions underlying their strategy are flawed or obsolete. When that happens, managers need to rigorously re-examine their strategy and adapt it, deciding whether incremental improvements will suffice or whether they need a new transformational strategy” (page 75).

By ensuring that organisational TM strategies are clearly defined, organisational “talent” will then be able to make more informed choices about their career and future growth. This will ensure that organisations are maximising their talent resources so that individuals develop in line with the organisational aspirations and future capabilities.

In instances where the TM strategy is clear, the qualitative analysis revealed that those organisations have clear structures in place to review and assess talent (including psychometric assessment, 360 appraisals, competency based assessment, key performance indicators and performance objectives), which supports talent to develop and grow for the future.

*All differences of 90% or higher has been deemed significant for the purposes of this report.

Look out next week for Part 4: Key Findings: TM strategies are not consistently applied across organisations and are therefore not being embedded in the mindset of their employees

For further information please contact: Dr Amanda Potter 01737 555 862. amanda.potter@zircon-mc.co.uk Reference: Talent Management. Copyright © 2012 Zircon Management Consulting Limited. All rights reserved.

In part two of this series of blogs summarising our 2012 research into the Future of Talent Management, we will provide the key aims and provide a summary of the clients who contributed.

Aims:

The aim of this research is to gain an understanding of how organisations approach TM and to identify whether or not they have a “talent mindset”. A “talent mindset” is defined by McKinsey and Company, 2001 in their landmark book, “The War for Talent” as “a deeply held belief that building a strong management talent pool is critical to achieving the aspirations of the company.”

In this research we explored whether an organisation’s TM strategy is effective at managing their Human Capital Asset. In particular, we assessed whether the end to end TM strategy is aligned with their business strategy and a differentiator for business success by:

• Delivering competitive advantage,
• Showing differentiation in the market
• Demonstrating brand presence,
• Delivering shareholder return and return on investment.

We explored the difference in perceptions of the definition, application and success of TM between its Originators (HR and Talent Leaders) and Implementers (Business Leaders) and whether they understand the value of end to end talent management processes.
The research explores these differences within 85 Private, Public and Not for Profit organisations.

Participants:

We invited 300 Senior Leaders to participate in the online survey and telephone interviews.150 Senior HR, Talent and Business Leaders responded from a total of 85 organisations. The split between Talent (including Learning and Development), HR and Business Leaders was reasonably even (50, 52, 48 respectively). 87% of the organisations were from the Private sector and the rest were from Not for Profit and Public sectors. The respondents came from various organisational sectors including: Financial Services, Legal, Healthcare, Logistics, Utilities, Leisure, Engineering and Technology.

82% of all Leaders were from large organisations with more than 250 employees, the rest of the sample, were from small and medium sized organisations. Half of the organisations describe themselves as growing and half as restructuring and sustaining.

Thank you to the following organisations who agreed to be named as part of this research:

Look out next week for Part 3: Key Findings

For further information please contact: Dr Amanda Potter 01737 555 862. amanda.potter@zircon-mc.co.uk Reference: Talent Management. Copyright © 2012 Zircon Management Consulting Limited. All rights reserved.

In the next series of blogs we will present our 2012 research into the Future of Talent Management.

Keeping the Talent Management (TM) strategy simple is a key driver of success for organisations. Our research has identified that whilst the majority of organisations have a TM strategy, it does not appear these are well communicated to Business Leaders. Whilst half of the Leaders interviewed, believe their organisation has a clear definition of talent and a clear TM strategy, the other half are not clear about what their organisation really means by “talent” or “talent strategy”.

We believe from our research that this is because TM strategies are not openly communicated or applied across organisations and are therefore not successfully embedded in the employee mindset. Only half of the Leaders interviewed said TM initiatives are consistently applied across their organisation and only one third believe that the TM practices are fully established and implemented.

Despite this, we did interview Leaders within organisations that have a strong TM agenda. These organisations tend to have forward looking capability models and talent strategies that are responsive to external market conditions aligned to business objectives, goals and strategies; and describe the most critical high potential behaviours for success. Few organisations (less than 30%) however use their talent strategy to show how they are different from their competitors. Organisations with a strong TM agenda also encourage their Leaders to demonstrate resilience when facing challenge and adversity, and are thought to consider the well being of their employees within the TM strategy. The implications of these results might be that whilst Leaders are encouraged to put forward ideas, only those ideas that support the status quo are likely to be considered. This finding contradicts the research on authentic leadership which states that “The key to a successful organization is having empowered leaders at all levels” (George, Sims, McLean & Mayer, 2007, page 7).

We found one contradiction within the research. Organisations encourage Leaders to play to their strengths, be authentic and unique, thus acting in-line with their personal values. However, at the same time, organisations want them to conform to the organisational norms and values.

Looking forward, the Leaders in this survey consistently agreed that they need to increase their focus on TM over the next three years in order for their organisation to remain competitive. They reported that they do not however have adequate budget to attract, recruit, develop or retain talent moving forward. This is unsurprising, when only a few organisations (less than 10%) actually prove the financial utility of using TM strategies, or measure the return for their shareholders. Indeed, whilst most organisations measure the engagement of their employees they do not use this information to validate the effectiveness of their talent strategies. Moving forward Leaders must prove the ROI and business benefits of investing in talent in order to secure the funding required for future business success

Look out next week for Part 2: The Aim and Participants

For further information please contact: Dr Amanda Potter 01737 555 862. amanda.potter@zircon-mc.co.uk Reference: Talent Management. Copyright © 2012 Zircon Management Consulting Limited. All rights reserved.

Zircon have recently conducted a piece research on Talent Management in which the findings will be presented by Dr. Amanda Potter at the Association of Business Psychologists Annual Conference, Bedfordshire, 11 May 2012. http://theabp.org.uk/conference/abp_conference_2012/>

For further information please contact: Dr Amanda Potter 01737 555 862. amanda.potter@zircon-mc.co.uk Reference: Talent Management. Copyright © 2012 Zircon Management Consulting Limited. All rights reserved.

In the previous blogs, Dr Amanda Potter and Melissa Tyson from Zircon identified five characteristics that have been shown to be significantly higher in Entrepreneurs than Line Managers. In this blog we have provided a summary of all of the Entrepreneurial Traits covered by previous research, in particular, those defined by Bird, 1989; Caird, 1988; Tibbits, 1979 and Wu, 2009:

 Innovativeness – the ability to produce solutions in new situations
 Results Orientation – the ability to set performance objectives and measures
 Initiative – the ability to be a self-starter and to meet the challenge of higher level objectives
 Manage Risks – the ability to take risks and manage uncertainty
 Knowledge – of the market and business opportunities
 Business Acumen Problem Solving – the ability to analyse and overcome problems, recognising patterns or trends
 Flexibility – the ability to effectively adapt to a variety of situations
 Influence – the ability to influence thoughts and actions of others
 Communication Skills – Strong written and verbal communication skills
 Self-Confidence
 Self-Control – the ability to manage one’s emotions under pressure
 Relationship Building – the ability to build and maintain personal networks
 Empathy – the ability to understand and respond to the concerns of others
 Commitment to Learning.

In summary, therefore key things to look for in an entrepreneur include:

• Tolerance of risk and ambiguity
• Calm with chaos
• Flexible amidst changes
• Responsive to opportunities
• Awareness of patterns
• Strategy towards marketplace
• Builds / leverages social capital
• Seeks advice from experts
• Have expertise in business matters
• Innovate around obstacles

For further information about how we integrate psychology research into our talent assessment and talent management offering, please contact Dr Amanda Potter.

References:
• Leon Schjoedt. (2009). Entrepreneurial job characteristics.
• Hannu Littunen. (2000). Entrepreneurship and the characteristics of the entrepreneurial personality.
• Caliendo & Kritikos. (2007). Is entrepreneurial success predictable?
• Ciavarella et al. (2004). The big five and venture survival.
• Campbell & Burnett. (2008). A new perspective in entrepreneurial trait analysis.
• Carland, Hoy, Boulton & Carland. (1988). Differentiating Entrepreneurs from Small Business Owners.

Written by Melissa Tyson, Occupational Psychologist.

After completing a 2 week internship last summer, I was lucky enough to be given the opportunity to work alongside the wonderful Zircon team for another two weeks during Easter 2012. After the experiences I gained within my first internship I was delighted to work for Zircon again, and I was eager to get started.

Client Projects
From my first day back, I was immediately given projects that were consultancy based. This was extremely useful and gave me valuable insights into the project writing and analytic skills required within a consultancy role. One of the main projects I worked on during my internship was for an engineering company. Within this project I participated in a wide range of tasks including: providing definitions for the uses of assessment tools to be inputted onto an online matrix, mapping psychometric tools to the organisational competencies, and assisting in the development and preparation of best practice guides. This project has opened my eyes to the world of consulting and the standards which organisations need to follow in order to deliver best practice procedures when recruiting and selecting.

Talent Management Research
Another project that I extremely enjoyed within this two week period was assisting in the development of Zircon’s talent management research. This piece of research looks at how organisations perceive talent management. I assisted in the results section of this report and therefore was able to put some of the research skills I’ve developed into practice. I really enjoyed analysing the data obtained and assessing the different perceptions respondents have of talent management within their organisation.

Thank you!
These two weeks at Zircon have been extremely insightful and I am tremendously grateful to the whole Zircon team for making me feel welcome again. I immediately felt like I was part of the team again, it was as if I hadn’t even left last summer! Thank you to the whole Zircon team for making me feel so welcome and for helping me gain this invaluable experience.

Final Thoughts…
This internship at Zircon will help me tremendously not only in completing my masters, but some of the skills I have acquired will stay with me throughout my career. I feel this internship has equipped me with many skills and given me an experience I’ll never forget.

Written by: Asha Pattni, Trainee Psychologist

In Zircon’s previous blog, Dr Amanda Potter and Melissa Tyson identified five characteristics that have been shown to be significantly higher in Entrepreneurs than Line Managers including: the Need for Achievement, Internal Locus of Control, Problem Solving Orientation, Interpersonal Reactivity and Assertiveness.

Entrepreneurship is not however, just about ‘standalone’ traits. Campbell & Burnett (2008) argue that it is important to consider both traits and the environment:

“Entrepreneurship involves the nexus of two phenomena; the presence of lucrative opportunities and the presence of enterprising individuals”(Shane & Venkataraman, 2000).

On this basis it can therefore be argued that entrepreneurial behaviour is very much driven by particular events and more specifically it is the reaction to these events at that particular time that sets entrepreneurs apart. Psychology research has in fact asserted for some time that behaviour is a function of both the person and the environment (e.g. Mischel 1968; Shaver & Scott 1991).

For further information about how we integrate psychology research into our talent assessment and talent management offering, please contact Dr Amanda Potter.

References:
• Leon Schjoedt. (2009). Entrepreneurial job characteristics.
• Hannu Littunen. (2000). Entrepreneurship and the characteristics of the entrepreneurial personality.
• Caliendo & Kritikos. (2007). Is entrepreneurial success predictable?
• Ciavarella et al. (2004). The big five and venture survival.
• Campbell & Burnett. (2008). A new perspective in entrepreneurial trait analysis.
• Carland, Hoy, Boulton & Carland. (1988). Differentiating Entrepreneurs from Small Business Owners.

Written by Melissa Tyson, Occupational Psychologist.

The plan is not the change

All too often those involved in creating the plan for change believe this to be the most essential part of the process, worthy of extended time and effort, while implementation is seen as ‘just’ a matter of communicating and rolling out the plan. Plans are a story of hope. Change happens when people change their habitual patterns of communication and intervention in a meaningful and sustainable way.

The map is not the territory

Any map of an organization is going to contain inaccuracies. Therefore any plan based on that imperfect map is going to be subject to corrective feedback where the assumptions of the map proved faulty. Unexpected reactions or effects of implementing the plan therefore should be embraced as giving useful information about how things are, rather than interpreted as a mistake in the planning.

A natural response to a burning platform is blind panic

People do not make great team decisions when they are panicking. They don’t even make good personal decisions. Creating fear and anxiety as drivers for change can have unhelpful consequences in producing self-orientated, unthinking survival behaviour. Better to create positive emotions in change that encourage creative, complex and group orientated thinking.

The path to the future is created not uncovered

Sometimes in change we act as if the future lies there waiting for us; we have only to uncover the path and follow it. Believe instead that the future is in a constant state of creation, that our actions today affect tomorrow; that how we understand the past affects how we conceive possibilities in the future, and we begin to see the creation of the future as an activity that takes place in a constant present.

Resistance is a sign of commitment

Resistance to change is often labelled as problematic. Instead it should be viewed as a sign of engagement, of commitment. There are many truths in organisational life and they don’t always align well. Some people may hold a different view about what is best for the organization. If they are prepared to risk conflict then they care enough to let you know. Be much more aware of unspoken disagreement disguised as compliance; undealt with now, it will surface as soon as the chips are down.

Meaning is created not dictated

I can not dictate to you how you are to understand things; I can only suggest. If I am unable to create a shared meaning with you then we are not aligned. All too often organizations try to dictate how their actions are to be interpreted by all. Better instead to have many conversations that assist groups in the organization to interpret and re-intrepret what is happening through the prism of their own many contexts, and to co-create meaning together.

There is no correct answer to the challenge of organisational form

Organizations are engaged in an endless challenge to organise themselves in an optimal form. Since the tensions within organizations are irreconcilable any solution is only a temporary truce. Constant adaptation within organisational form is healthy, anomolies to the norm may add value for a time, a complexity of forms may aid flexibility. Essentially though, as has been said before, change is a constant organisational activity and continual small changes are usually more adaptive than 3-5 yearly big lurches.

Appreciating Change specialises in helping organizations achieve positive, rapid and sustainable change.

Author: Sarah Lewis
Source: http://www.appreciatingchange.co.uk/blog/?p=608

Zircon are conducting a piece of Talent Management research, exploring the difference in perceptions of the definition, application and success of Talent Management between its Originators (HR and Talent Directors) and Implementers (Line Managers and Directors). The research explores the difference in definition, application and success of Talent Management Strategies within 85 Private, Public and Not for Profit Organisations. We are presenting the results at the 12th Annual Association of Business Psychology (ABP) Conference on 10th-12th May, 2012 and hope that you will join us.

About the ABP Conference

The ABP Conference features outstanding selection of talks, workshops, and master classes with keynotes from some of the UK’s leading business psychologists (including our very own Dr Amanda Potter and Julie Lee) and professionals. You will have a choice of sessions, providing you with practical learning opportunities, updates from the forefront of research in business psychology and information about how the latest insights are being effectively applied to the commercial world by industry practitioners. Plus there will be a raft of fun networking opportunities enabling you to expand your business network in a relaxed and entertaining environment.

Key conference themes for 2012:

Reflections
Sharing examples of established approaches, tools and techniques that you have used.

Discoveries
Presenting new tools, techniques and insights, or the innovative use of established methods.

Adaptations
Exploring what we can do to help ourselves adapt and thrive in the current market.

Prospects
Exploring what we can do to help out business and our client’s business to thrive in the future.

Please visit the conference website for the latest updates: www.theabp.org.uk/conference .
The cost of attending for the full three days (including accommodation and all food) is just £399 +VAT. If you haven’t been to the conference before, as our guest you will be entitled to free membership of the ABP for a year (if you are not already a member) and 10% discount off the conference fee (£359 +VAT). A group of 5 members qualifies at the reduced Early Bird rate of £359 plus VAT each.

To book a place, please complete the registration form at www.theabp.org.uk/conference ensuring you make a note that you have been referred to by us so you get your free membership and discount!

We very much hope that you will be interested in helping us making the ABP Conference 2012 a fantastic event of benefit to us all and look forward to seeing you there!

Written by Sarah Green.

Within Zircon, Dr Amanda Potter and the team have been talking to clients about Entrepreneurial Characteristics. As part of this work we have completed some desk research into the traits and characteristics that have been used to define and useful in explaining the past successes and in predicting the future development of Entrepreneurs. According to Begley and Boyd some of these include:

Five of these characteristics have been shown to be significantly higher in Entrepreneurs than line managers including: the Need for Achievement, Internal Locus of Control, Problem Solving Orientation, Interpersonal Reactivity and Assertiveness. We have provided further information about each of these five significantly different characteristics.

Motivational Traits: Need for Achievement
According to McCelland’s theory (1961) individuals who have a strong need to achieve often find their way into entrepreneurship and are successful. It expresses the motivation of business founders to search for new and better solutions than those given in the actual (market) environment, and their ability to realise these solutions through their own performance in the market. Therefore ‘need to achieve’ includes:

1. wanting to problem solve
2. setting targets
3. striving for these targets through their own efforts

Motivations Traits: Internal Locus of Control
Rotter (1966) focused upon Locus of control – it is important for entrepreneurs to have belief in one’s own potentiality for influencing events. It has been found that external locus of control decreases and internal locus of control increases in entrepreneurs, as they became more experienced

Cognitive Skills: Problem-solving Orientation
Problem-solving orientation expresses the cognitive ability to act in a complex environment and to feel attracted to non-routine tasks. It enables an individual to understand and solve existing problems by transferring knowledge into specific actions.

Social Skills: Interpersonal Reactivity
Interpersonal reactivity describes the ability to put oneself in the place of another person. In the context of entrepreneurship, it expresses the ability to approach other people and develop rewarding relationships with them. It is believed that a sufficient level of interpersonal reactivity enables the entrepreneur to produce more client-oriented products, which is why this variable is related to entrepreneurial success.

Social Skills: Assertiveness
Assertiveness expresses the ability to assert oneself and achieve one’s interests in a socially acceptable way. This variable is therefore complementary to interpersonal reactivity, and relates to the total performance of an entrepreneur towards his clients and suppliers.

N.B. Several studies demonstrate that ‘need to achieve’ and ‘locus of control’ are linked in that a strong need to achieve is related to targets and the desire to reach these, whilst the locus of control is related to translating these thoughts into action.

For further information about how we integrate psychology research into our talent assessment and talent management offering, please contact Dr Amanda Potter.

References:
• Leon Schjoedt. (2009). Entrepreneurial job characteristics.
• Hannu Littunen. (2000). Entrepreneurship and the characteristics of the entrepreneurial personality.
• Caliendo & Kritikos. (2007). Is entrepreneurial success predictable?
• Ciavarella et al. (2004). The big five and venture survival.
• Campbell & Burnett. (2008). A new perspective in entrepreneurial trait analysis.
• Carland, Hoy, Boulton & Carland. (1988). Differentiating Entrepreneurs from Small Business Owners.

Written by Melissa Tyson, Occupational Psychologist.