Talent management as a motivational tool
In the latest Reflective Learning Paper from the Human Resources Study Area at Edinburgh Napier, the spotlight is turned on Talent Management.
Each paper in this series, written as a collaborative process between an academic and a practitioner, provides a review of our latest research on contemporary issues, and what this means in practice. It includes a case study and a set of reflective questions designed to encourage and enable the successful application of practice-based learning to business contexts.
As organisations grapple with rapidly and constantly changing business contexts, talent management is becoming increasingly vital to success.
In the latest paper, Norma D’Annunzio-Green, Senior Lecturer at Edinburgh Napier, and Dr Allan Ramdhony, lecturer in HRM and research methods at Middlesex University, Mauritius reflect on their latest thinking about the deployment of a ‘motivational approach’ to Talent Management (TM), including an anonymous practitioner case study.
The authors argue that current approaches are highly ‘performative’ – marked by traditional practices that are primarily driven by the economic interests and performance outcomes of the organisation.
The motivational and development needs of workers currently receive less attention.
To advance the debate, the authors introduce the term ‘Motivational Talent Management’ (MTM). The term identifies a cluster of HRM-related activities that have potential to strike a better balance between these two imperatives.
Compelling evidence highlights how MTM could become a powerful lever for sustainable organisational change, and points to the vital role that line managers must play in re-energising the talent management processes.
In this paper, a case study of changes taking place within a privately owned UK health care organisation highlights how the inability to effectively manage people is one of the most common pitfalls of organisational change management.
It is unthinkable that change managers can expect to deliver sustainable change without the contribution of a motivated and committed talent pool, therefore the development of committed employees, who can creatively contribute to sustainable change success, is of essential interest to all organisations.
This paper makes essential reading for senior leaders and line managers, who all have a vital role to play in creating and sustaining the type of enabling social structures and trusting relational contexts that are conducive to Motivational Talent Management.