The Talent Imperative

The most fundamental idea about talent management is that the need for talent is not going away. Not in a global knowledge and service economy.

Because talented people are:

• The engines of change and growth
• Potential roadblocks to achieving business objectives if not properly aligned and managed
• A scarce resource

Talent is the chief asset of organizations today, replacing a century old imperative to consider people a cost. Talent confers a competitive advantage through application of intellect and innovation. The global economy accelerates the imperative for innovation, creativity, and productivity.

What’s not going well is that many organizations seem to be aware of the talent imperative but do not act as though it were a true imperative. There is a lot of talk about “people being the most important asset” but reality often does not match the rhetoric.