Managing Your Organization s Talent

Transcription

1 Survey Results Managing Your Organization s Talent

2 TABLE OF CONTENTS SURVEY OVERVIEW 3 KEY FINDINGS 3 DETAILED ANALYSIS 4 ABOUT THE STUDY 14 ABOUT CONVERGYS 16 ABOUT TRAINING INDUSTRY, INC. 16 ABOUT THE RESEARCH

3 SURVEY OVERVIEW In good economic times or bad, one factor has remained the same a company s greatest asset is its people. Effectively managing and deploying that asset is even more critical in today s business climate. This study by Training Industry, Inc. and Convergys found that the majority of respondents believe that their organization s ineffective or immature talent management processes put their companies at risk. This study includes talent management processes within the areas of learning, performance management, compensation, recruiting, and succession management. In particular, respondents report that the greatest risk and greatest potential to improve corporate performance are in the same area: succession management. This perceived level of risk is not surprising given three key factors: 1) a lack of strong strategic focus, 2) the spotty use of a foundational tool such as competency models, and 3) a lack of integration between key talent management processes. KEY FINDINGS Finding #1: Ineffective Talent Processes Pose Risks to Company Two thirds or more of the respondents felt that their companies ineffective talent management processes put their companies at risk. Finding #2: Succession Management Is a High Risk and High Potential Area Respondents view succession management as presenting both the greatest risk (when ineffective) and greatest potential to improve company performance. Finding #3: Respondents Processes Support More Tactical than Strategic Goals Respondents believe their talent management initiatives provide more support for their tactical rather than strategic goals. Finding #4: Competency Models Are Widely Used, but Not For Hiring Most respondents reported that nearly all of their groups use competency models for at least some job roles, with sales using them most. A smaller percentage use competency models in the hiring process. Finding #5: Full Integration between Talent Processes Is Rare Only one in four respondents had full integration between any two talent management processes. The top three most integrated processes were performance management and learning, performance management and compensation, and recruiting and compensation. Budgetary constraints and lack of management buy in are the top challenges to integrating talent management processes. 3 3

4 DETAILED ANALYSIS Finding #1: Ineffective Talent Processes Pose Risks to Company Two thirds or more of the respondents felt that their companies ineffective talent management processes put their companies at risk. Question: How at risk is your company in each talent management area? At least 65% of all respondents believe their companies are at either a medium or high level of risk in every listed talent management area. An overwhelming 86% of respondents feel that deficiencies in succession management place their company at the highest level of risk. Nearly half of all respondents perceive that it places them at a high level of risk. 4 4

5 Finding #2: Succession Management Is a High Risk & High Potential Area Respondents view succession management as presenting both the greatest risk (when it is ineffective or absent) and greatest potential to improve company performance. Question: Rank each process according to its potential to improve company performance when fully implemented. The highest risk area succession management was most frequently given the highest ranking for its potential to improve company performance. A full quarter of respondents ranked it first out of seven talent management processes. Respondents top three rankings are shown below in order of the highest percentages selecting #1. Companies appear to have focused on protecting their high priority areas first. The two processes getting the highest combined percentage of the top three rankings for their potential to improve company performance Identifying key roles and core competencies and Identifying high performers and flight risk employees were also among the lowest overall risk areas. 5 5

6 Finding #3: Respondents Processes Support More Tactical than Strategic Goals Respondents believe their talent management initiatives provide more support for their tactical rather than strategic goals. Question: Which goals are supported by your company's talent management processes? 63% indicated their companies talent management processes currently focus on supporting tactical goals, such as filling vacancies and lowering attrition. Over half of the respondents currently leverage talent management as a strategy to assist employees in meeting their career goals. This focus indicates companies are interested in supporting long term relationships with their employees and can be considered tactical or strategic depending on how well employee development and career goals are aligned with company goals. By contrast, the last three areas, which are strategic or long term in nature, are currently supported by only 38 39% of respondents. They include supporting and identifying sustaining and emerging growth opportunities, differentiating against the competition, and looking at multi year strategies in areas such as workforce transitions. Other current goals that respondents offered for their talent management include: To comply with statutory requirements To meet contractual terms and service standards To be internally recognized as a great place to work 6 6

7 Finding #4: Competency Models Are Widely Used, but Not For Hiring Most respondents reported that nearly all of their groups use competency models for at least some job roles, with sales using them most. A smaller percentage use competency models in the hiring process. Question: For which groups of employees has your company developed role analyses or competency models? For all groups except manufacturing, the majority of respondents reported having competency models for either all or some of their employees. The groups which make the greatest use of competency models are sales, HR, customer service, IT, finance, and marketing with over two thirds having competency models for some or all roles and over 20% having competency models for all roles. These percentages are shown below. Note: More groups define competency models for just some of their roles rather than all of their roles. Survey respondents also specified for which roles they used competency models: management or non management. All groups focused their competency models on management more than non management. Only 25% or less defined competency models for non management roles, as shown on the next chart. 7 7

8 Question: How involved is the Learning and Development (L&D) department in the following talent management processes? For every talent management process, the majority of responsibilities are shared with groups outside of L&D. L&D plays the greatest role in developing leadership and key functional competencies. The percentages of respondents with L&D having sole or shared responsibility are below. 8 8

9 L&D is least involved in succession readiness, a potentially critical talent management process. Question: Which of the following best describes how your company hires? Two thirds (66%) of respondents hire to a job description rather than hiring to a competency model (28%). An even split 14% each hire to a role based competency model while the others hire to a competency profile of top performers. Finding #5: Full Integration between Talent Processes Is Rare Only one in four respondents had full integration between any two talent management processes. The top three most integrated processes were performance management and learning, performance management and compensation, and recruiting and compensation. Budgetary constraints and lack of management buy in are the top challenges to integrating talent management processes. Question: Rate the degree of integration between each pair of talent management processes. Two thirds of respondents reported some integration between learning and performance management, performance management and compensation, and recruiting and compensation. Overall, performance management is the most integrated of all the processes. 9 9

10 The process least frequently integrated with other talent management areas was succession management, one of the most at risk and critical areas for driving corporate performance. Question: Rate each pair of talent management processes according to their potential to improve corporate performance when fully integrated. When integrated, learning and succession management and performance management and compensation clearly emerged as respondents top choices for the highest potential to improve corporate performance. Survey results show that respondents companies are integrating the right processes and suggest a good starting point for companies looking to connect their talent management initiatives. Of the four processes with the highest potential to improve corporate performance when fully integrated, all but one learning and succession management is among the most well integrated processes. Likewise, performance management is the process most likely to improve corporate performance when fully integrated and is also the most well integrated process. When both the high and medium potential to improve corporate performance are viewed together, three of the top four combined ratings are for performance management. The percentages of both are shown below, sorted in order of the High potential

11 Question: Which talent management integration challenges does your company experience? For the majority of respondents, budgetary constraints and lack of management buy in are challenges in integrating talent management processes

12 Only 35% felt that Lack of centralization of groups responsible for talent management was a challenge for them. Question: Which of the following best describes the way your company is organized to support talent management initiatives? The majority of survey respondents (55%) have a centralized talent management group, while 43% have a decentralized structure with multiple groups responsible for different talent management processes. Question: Which best describes how your company integrates your compensation programs? Over half of the respondents have no integration in their compensation programs either dealing with each placement individually (34%) or doing little to integrate compensation programs (23%)

13 About one in five (21%) fully integrate at the corporate level. Another one in five (21%) have only some level of integration, either standardizing programs (13%) or integrating at the technology level (8%)

14 ABOUT THE STUDY This study was conducted through an online survey of 71 talent management professionals. Which of the following best describes the role you play in your organization in regards to talent management? About half of the respondents were from the learning function. Other roles include some broader leadership oversight roles (e.g., Head of HR, Organizational Development or Quality) or roles managing a variety of talent management processes. Please indicate your company s size and industry. Survey respondents were fairly evenly divided between five ranges of company sizes. Over half of the companies had 1,000 or more employees

15 Respondents were just as spread out in their industries as in their company sizes

16 ABOUT CONVERGYS As the global leader in Relationship Management, Convergys partners with clients to deliver HR Solutions that transform global HR to drive more value from employee relationships, fostering greater organizational effectiveness and lowering costs. For 25 years, Convergys HR Solutions have enabled the Global 1000 to optimize employee relationships through business process outsourcing. Convergys utilizes a transformational approach to help clients harmonize HR processes, standardize global HR technology, and improve service delivery. As a result, our clients achieve a greater level of workforce insight that enables HR to make better decisions and better manage global talent as a corporate asset. For more, go to or contact ABOUT TRAINING INDUSTRY, INC. Training Industry, Inc. is an objective and trusted expert on the marketplace for learning. Its mission is to make the marketplace more efficient through the world s largest online community of training communities and through services such as Training Industry Conferences, Training Industry Quarterly Ezine, Training Industry Webinars, and Training Industry Research. Through these channels, Training Industry, Inc. provides news, articles, strategies, practices, and processes. For more information, go to or contact Tracy Hollister at or thollister@trainingindustry.com ABOUT THE RESEARCH Copyright 2009 Convergys and Training Industry, Inc. All rights reserved. No materials from this study can be duplicated, copied, re published, or re used without written permission from Convergys or Training Industry, Inc. The information and insights contained in this report reflect the research and observations of Convergys and Training Industry, Inc. analysts