Talent management is a tricky business practice to master, simply because it looks different for every company, based on its unique needs, employees and culture. While there are many ways to manage talent well, there are a few key elements that are seen across all industries that will help make talent management strategies work more effectively for businesses.

Hire Before the Busy Season

Managers who wait for the busy season to even think about hiring new employees set themselves up for failure. They are much more likely to make panic hires just to have another body on the team. This can cause just as many, if not more problems as being understaffed. If you’re in the office, a panic hire can result in an unqualified employee who complicates running systems and can contribute to missed deadlines and clashes with company culture. If a panic hire happens in a construction company, it can lead to injuries due to lack of training with machinery as well as problems keeping projects on schedule.

The trick here is to hire proactively. Do you know that your company gets especially busy from May-October? Consider starting the hiring process during the off-season so that the new employees have time to train and acclimate to the company culture before the pressure of the busy season strikes. This will reduce the likelihood of a bad culture fit, accidents, or scheduling issues that come with being understaffed or hiring an inappropriate candidate.

Prioritize a Learning Culture

A learning culture can take a good company to work for and turn it into a great company to work for. Companies who invest time and energy developing their employees will see that their employees now want to invest time with them. Because of this, it is imperative that employers seek out and create learning opportunities for their employees. These include, but are not limited to, providing inservices, developing learning plans, providing tuition assistance, and mentorship programs.

While it isn’t always reasonable to adopt all of these programs, it can be helpful to find the right one for your company. If you have a large number of new employees seasonally, a mentorship program could be helpful to acclimate employees to their new work and company culture. If much of your work requires a Master’s Degree, consider tuition assistance for those employees who are in the process of earning their degree. It’s all about finding the right balance for your organization.

Think Long-Term

The purpose of talent management solutions is to set a company up for a successful future. Succession should be a priority from the moment a company begins a new talent management strategy. Every talent management strategy should prepare employees for advancement and growth opportunities within their organization. This will keep them engaged and invested because the organization is providing a career path and investing in their employees. For these reasons, effective succession planning is also credited with improving retention, saving employers the time and money they would have used to hire new employees.

While there is no one-size-fits-all option for talent management, these common themes are at the heart of all successful talent management strategies. By continuing to hire proactively, prioritizing a learning culture, and developing their workforce for the long term, employers can set their companies up for lasting success and employee engagement and retention.

The BirdDogHR Talent Management System is a fully integrated talent management suite of software and services that improves candidate quality and flow, shortens time to hire, centralizes learning and increases employee productivity. Contact us today or schedule a demo for more information.