Sharlyn Lauby - The SHRM Essential Guide to Talent Management: A Handbook for HR Professionals, Managers, Businesses, and Organizations

Copyright 2022 Sharlyn Lauby. All rights reserved.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Lauby, Sharlyn, author.

Title: The SHRM essential guide to talent management : a handbook for hr professionals, managers, businesses, and organizations / Sharlyn Lauby, SHRM-SCP.

Description: Alexandria, VA : Society for Human Resource Management, [2022]| Includes bibliographical references.

Identifiers: LCCN 2022007176 (print) | LCCN 2022007177 (ebook) | ISBN 9781586445287 (paperback) | ISBN 9781586445294 (pdf) | ISBN 9781586445300 (epub) | ISBN 9781586445317 (mobi)

Subjects: LCSH: Personnel management. | Employee retention.

Classification: LCC HF5549 .L28588 2022 (print) | LCC HF5549 (ebook) | DDC 352.6--dc23/eng/20220324

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022007176

LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022007177

Published in the United States of America

FIRST EDITION

PB Publishing 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 61.12303

Acknowledgments

Writing a book is a group activity. I want to thank the wonderful people who helped me make this book happen.

First, a huge thanks to my publisher, Matthew Davis, and the entire SHRM team for their support in giving me this opportunity. I also want to thank Montrese Hamilton for keeping the entire project on track. My eternal thanks to Olivia Turner and Juanita Covert for making sure my words are clear and my grammar and punctuation are correct. And I cant forget Robert Kern for his design work and Grace Baker for indexing all the content.

Its been a delight working with everyone. I learn something new with every book, and this one is no exception.

Another huge thanks to my clients and colleagues who contributed their expertise. You didnt have to answer my request, but Im very happy you did. Im very fortunate to have such giving professionals in my network. I know readers will find your insights valuable.

Last but certainly not least, all my love and admiration to my husband, Keith. Writing a book becomes a family activity in the Lauby household, and hes a great sport about it. I owe him one very long vacation.

Thank you all and enjoy the read. Cheers!

Sharlyn Lauby

Introduction: Talent Management Defined

Everyone needs a go-to resource guide for work. Resource guides provide answers and information, similar to a dictionary or an atlas. They can help provide clarity and definition. Resource guides can be used by anyone at any stage of their career.

During my career, Ive used resource guides to help sell ideas, maintain consistency, and get unstuck. For example, a resource guide helped me use the cost-per-hire metric as a justification in selling senior management on changing the amount of an employee referral bonus. It served as a checklist of all the things to remember when I was looking for low-cost and no-cost perks to discuss during an employee focus group. And when I was stuck trying to design a training program, it offered the definition of an A-B-C-D objective to help me refocus.

Whether youre an HR professional or people manager, this book is designed to be your go-to desk resource guide that will offer practical answers and solutions to help you with your talent management challenges. It doesnt matter the years of experience you have or if you have any experience at all. Everyone can use a resource guide. It doesnt matter what industry youre in, nonprofit or for profit, or the size of your organization. This resource guide is about helping professionals find results.

Talent Management Defined

Talent management is the most evergreen of human resources topics. According to the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), talent management strategies are designed to attract, develop, retain, and use employees with the necessary skills and aptitude to meet current and future business needs. Ive never heard a CEO say that finding and keeping the best talent wasnt a business imperative. In fact, its absolutely necessary for organizations to achieve their strategic goals.

But the discussion about talent management moves quickly. Yes, we need to stay ahead of the trends. But we also need to remember the foundation that those trends are based on, and thats why this resource has been published.

How to Use This Guide

Using the SHRM definition of talent management, the eight primary components of talent management are as follows:

1. Planning (Strategic and Workforce). It all starts with planning. Talent management goals must align with organizational goals. And they must be consistent with other talent management strategies like performance management and learning. The organizations strategic plan will be a key driver in creating its workforce plan.
2. Talent Acquisition . Organizations will use their workforce plan to determine how many employees to hire and what skills they need. Regardless of the unemployment rate, organizations always want to hire the best talent. In this section, well talk about how organizations can stay competitive in talent acquisition.
3. Onboarding and Employee Engagement. No organization wants to spend a lot of resources hiring someone only to have them resign early in their career. New hires need the training and tools to be successful. That starts on day one with onboarding. Employees who receive a good start are more engaged and productive.