A company’s most valuable—and most expensive—asset is its talent. Finding, hiring, and training that talent are all important, and no organization could exist without those things. But when you have that creative talent on board and working, you want to keep them happy, keep them growing and keep increasing their value. Here are some ways to develop your managers as well as your talent:
- Offer Rewards–We hope you are rewarding your talent for productivity gains and reaching sales quotas, but consider rewarding your managers for their talent management successes. A great boss will keep your talent productive and creative and if your managers are making an effort to be outstanding leaders, make sure they know you know it.
- Create Mentors–In marketing, you are always analyzing what is working and dropping what is not. You can do the same with your managers. Develop evaluation tools and pair up your talented leaders with less experienced managers to make sure that what is working internally infuses your culture.
- Provide Training–As many as 40% of managers are defined by their employees as “bad” or worse bosses. Those employees are thinking about finding a new role. But turnover is not inevitable. Even experienced managers can benefit from some training in talent management.
- Consider the Consequences–If you think you need to consolidate your team, be sure you have carefully thought about the unintended consequences of piling one more job on that overworked assistant, giving that account manager 3 more clients, or crossing your fingers and hoping for the best. Cost is only one consideration in successful talent management. Make sure you know what the benefit will be. Your amazing team could be one straw away from falling apart.
Turnover can be painfully expensive and affects your entire culture. Effective talent management can help your company avoid it.
Wendy Stackhouse, for Artisan Creative