10,000 baby boomers will be reaching age 65 in the next two decades. Couple that with millennials, who will comprise half of that workforce by 2020. These two issues demand that companies in America focus on talent management strategies in order to head off a damaging skills and leadership gap.
Situational Leadership
The way that employees define leadership has transformed from generation to generation. While baby boomers and even generation X workers tend to associate leadership with management and executive roles, for Millennials, leadership is less title driven and more situational.
- In a recent Global Workforce Leadership study, 68 percent of millennial employees said they already consider themselves leaders, regardless of their titles. They feel confident that they have the ability to exert influence, demonstrate excellence in their areas of expertise, and mentor and guide others.
- However, only 11 percent of millennials want to be in the C suite and only 10 percent are interested in traditionally defined leadership roles. For the majority of today’s young workers, leadership is situational and very personal. Companies need to redefine what they mean by leadership, beyond job descriptions.
Invest in Talent Management
Today’s employees are looking for personalized career guidance and growth at every stage of their careers. But industry research reveals a major disconnect between what employees want and what employers offer in terms of training, development and feedback.
- A study of 430 HR professionals by the Society for Human Resource Development (SHRM) and AARP found that many U.S. organizations are largely unprepared for the leadership void that baby boomers will leave in the workplace. A significant majority (72 percent) described the loss of older talent as a problem or a potential problem, yet 71 percent said their companies had not conducted strategic workforce planning assessments. And 60 percent had not even identified their workforce needs over the next five years.
- The Global Workforce study showed that only 52 percent of companies conduct annual employee performance reviews. When they track performance metrics, 58 percent still use last-generation technology, such as spreadsheets. Less than 25 percent are using Big Data, predictive analytics or metrics visualization.
Take a proactive approach, listen to the newest members of your workforce, and understand what makes them tick.
- Understand how the employee/employer relationship has changed. The average tenure at a company is now five years or less, so there must be clear expectations about what each party will gain from it.
- Take a close look at your talent management practices. Do they need modification or even a total overhaul? It’s imperative that you demonstrate your investment in your employees’ continued growth and success.
- Utilize cutting-edge technology to enhance your talent processes. Current and future generations offer unlimited opportunities to use predictive analytics and prospective guidance to shape their career paths. Leverage technology in every aspect of talent management, so you can not only empower your current leaders, but also identify future ones at every level of your organization.
The Talent Bridge team can partner with you to put your talent management goals into practice and turn your employee development vision into reality. Read our related posts or contact us today to learn more.