Future-proof your talent strategy for the next normal
Whether the pandemic will soon be over or continue into 2022 and beyond is a question that governments, business leaders, and even health authorities have a hard time answering. From a talent perspective, however, no one can deny the acceleration that COVID-19 has brought to the already undergoing shifts in the labor market. The 4th industrial revolution was rushed into with employers trying to figure out the amplified skills gap, the new Gen Z influx, attempting to staff current business efforts, and all the while striving to create a safe work environment for employees.
So how exactly do you prepare for the next normal? There isn’t an easy or one-size-fits-all answer. Yet, you can start with the following action points.
1. (Re)/define who you are
Whether you were recently forced to rethink your business model or not, it’s important that you strengthen your image in the market. It’s rather messy in the labor market, and candidates many times don’t know who to pick. Portraying a sharp, bold employer brand is key to attracting the best talent. Why do you exist as an organization? When people join, what will they be contributing to? Is your purpose clear and at the forefront of your digital presence? Can you articulate in simple terms how you create value and how you’re different from others? Try asking a few random people in your organization to answer these questions. Their answers should be telling. A McKinsey survey of US companies found that 82 percent of employees said organizational purpose is important, but only half that number said their purpose drove impact. This leads to my next recommendation.
2. Unclog the inner workings of the machine
Your identity is crucial, but taken alone will not achieve much. That’s because people will connect the dots sooner or later. In other words, what candidates see better be what they get once they actually do the work. Connecting purpose with roles, objectives, and performance targets that are meant to achieve it is as important as the clarity of identity itself. We know very well how easy it is to sell a dream job though how hard it is to create a culture from the top down to actually deliver on those promises. If you want an example of the disconnect between vision and responsible operations, just take a look at WeWork. When your employees understand how their work connects to the organization’s ability to create value, then purposes align — theirs and the company’s. Measure that alignment and make your employees part of the process. It takes a certain vulnerability for management to recognize they don’t have everything figured out or even ask for help. With shifting business priorities as we advance through 2021, crowdsourcing process improvement and innovation within the organization will unearth hidden talent for intrapreneurship. If you don’t, they’ll go out there and do it by themselves. In 2020 alone, there were more than 1.5 million new businesses in the United States. If you don’t spot the talent, someone else will or they will figure it out on their own. This ties in with the third and perhaps most important of the three action points.
3. Create a system to develop capabilities for the (near) future
It’s no secret that the exponential increase in the use of automation, artificial intelligence, and the pervasiveness of the digital throughout the economy is rapidly transforming work. Let’s take a stark example: according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, US productivity increased by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter of 2020 after increasing by 10.6% in the second quarter, amounting to the largest 6-month improvement since 1965! That was partially due to the decrease in output and hours in the prior period, and the full extent of the changes in productivity will become clear over the next few years. This created the need for more and different kinds of capabilities very quickly. This trend can only continue to unfold, creating a gap not just in relevant talent, but also in the mechanism to develop those new capabilities. Again, if you don’t, someone else will and you’ll be left in the dust in a not so distant future. Talent is already scarcer than capital. Start by allocating leadership, a budget, and a strong informal education capacity. Check out Cisco Network Academy (www.netacad.com), which offers a self-paced IT program that connects its graduates to Cisco job opportunities as well as other companies’. That attracts a lot of talent and creates a phenomenal talent pool for Cisco to pick and choose from!
In closing, I can’t highlight enough the importance of the massive shift happening during the last 12 months toward remote and virtual work. It may be tempting to revert back to the office, yet the future seems to favor nimble organizations that find and hire talent wherever they are. Be forward-looking, innovate and develop ways to improve virtual and remote work alike.
