Talent shaping, not talent taking: Organisations make the transition from stealing top talent to upskilling employees

Shape your talent; don’t take it. That appears to be one of the new mantras in Australia as organisations look internally, rather than solely looking externally, to appoint roles and build talent pipelines amid ongoing talent shortages.

After the fast and furious hiring trends of the past three years – including a mad scramble to steal top talent – in a job market plagued by skills shortages, last year marked a turning point for many organisations.

Organisations have been rethinking their hiring strategies for certain roles and started to transition from talent taking to talent shaping.

The talent crunch and growing economic uncertainty make it more difficult for companies to appoint key roles.

Tightened budgets, changing work styles as employees continue to seek flexibility and hybrid work arrangements, and talent scarcity will continue to impact enterprise-level decision making throughout 2024.

Following conversations with people and culture leaders around these issues, it would be remiss for companies not to lean into education and training initiatives to upskill current team members if appropriate.

For certain roles, companies can upskill existing talent to develop specific technical skills to meet specific needs.

By taking this approach, they can tap into an existing cultural fit since the team member is already familiar with stakeholders and the organisation, often resulting in increased retention.

In the current climate, employees are expressing an urgent need for their development and investment in their growth like never before.

Money is one thing, but people often think, “Am I growing in this role?” It’s a major reason why many people leave. They’re looking for their employer to invest in them.

A growing number of employers were listening and starting to align themselves with educational institutes, as well as mentoring and development programs.

There’s a lot of talk about leadership development, deliberate development plans, and 360-degree feedback for leaders to promote self-awareness, drive growth and create strong and diverse internal teams.

Another strategy critical for leaders is capturing in-house talent early and viewing interns as future assets.

Importance needs to be placed on retaining, upskilling and talent. This is how organisations will go from talent taking to talent shaping.

While upskilling and fast-tracking talent in-house is a viable and cost-effective solution, it needs to be done with caution.

Some sectors need years of experience and time to be able to develop the depth and skills, so leaders just need to ensure they aren’t putting their company at risk by promoting internal candidates who aren’t ready for the role.

By collaborating with an executive firm, companies can be confident no talent opportunities are being overlooked.

While the reality is there will always be team members who leave their place of work, it’s important for employers to pinpoint the things that may convince employees to stay.

Identifying what makes your team members inclined to remain at your organisation is an important part of an employee retention strategy.

If leaders don’t create opportunities for team members to develop and gain new skills, they’re essentially inviting those people to explore other options.

It’s about identifying team members who want to progress and identifying a path of talent shaping that will help advance their careers.

Creating an environment of learning and growth is key to not only retaining and shaping talent but also building sustainable talent pipelines within a company to address evolving business needs.

Silvana Pardo is the director at TRANSEARCH International Australia.