Managing up

“Getting the right people in place is a linchpin to success in large, rapid-growth markets, but 42 per cent of global organizations are struggling with it, according to a survey by Ernst & Young…Just 20 per cent of executives believe their company manages talent effectively across all markets, and less than one-third agree their top management team has an international outlook on decision making.”

This quote taken from the recent Canadian HR Reporter post, "Nearly one-half of firms struggling to build teams in rapid-growth markets," encompasses the findings from a Ernst & Young report examining the growing competitive job market on the immediate horizon. Focused on the need for companies to retool for this shift in available resources, EY offers four key sustainable talent management issues every company should be exploring:

Top management teams lack international experience: Develop leaders from within and mandate global experience for staff to broaden your company's international footprint.

Lack of an internal management pipeline forces companies to recruit from rivals: Avoid recruiting from competition, which can lead to high turnover and salary inflation. Instead, focus on building internal pipelines early on that develop local talent.

Companies are unable to retain and reward high performers in different markets: Align employees' goals with business objectives and promote incentives that reward high performers.

C-suite leaders and lower-level managers hold conflicting views on talent management: Establish uniform metrics that enable your company to compare talent management processes across regions.

Of course, there is always the question of performance pay as a sustainability driver. Performance pay structures involve setting base pay with incentives to obtain additional compensation for a demonstration of certain behavior. This concept is widely used in particular industries, based on the simple idea that pay can motivate job performance, increase employee effectiveness, and align business goals. This model offers several potential advantages:

• It aligns compensation to desired performance
• It rewards the right behaviors and builds unity
• It encourages self-management
• It encourages innovation

The critical drivers of performance, accountability and commitment have traditionally been thought to be the measures of a sustainable workforce. However, top business sustainability cultures now realize there is a ‘required’ balance in individual talent management. By linking compensation to specific sustainability concepts, businesses have the potential to align the sustainability goals of the organization and motivate behavior.

In order to meet the growing demands of business and maintain a competitive advantage, companies must address organizational culture as a primary factor in the talent attraction/development process. Business strategies that increase active participation both internal and external to the company, like sustainability and CSR engagement can enhance your business culture and grow your talent pool.

Julie Urlaub is the founder and managing partner of Taiga Company, a sustainability social media consulting firm, where she aids clients to powerfully engage in sustainability-related issues and stakeholder communications in the social space. She can be contacted at www.taigacompany.com | @taigacompany | Facebook/TaigaCompany

Photos courtesy of flickr users Derek Bridges and Endless Simmer.