Today’s business environment is still uncertain with unprecedented events leading us to ways of business that are unlike anything we have dealt with before. The Oliver Group stays in constant connection with clients and continues to uncover methods to provide value and support leaders through their new competitive landscape. There are many pressures on leaders and while some companies are growing, many are struggling to maintain their foothold or losing ground. Here are some things we hear from forward-thinking organizations and how they are prioritizing their talent strategies:

“We need to make succession planning and talent development a higher priority.” According to the American Management Association’s Corporate Learning Solutions, only 14% felt like they were well-prepared to deal with the sudden loss of key leaders.  Companies are investing more in succession management and are working to incorporate it into their cultures, as part of a multiple-tiered approach to preparing for and preventing future vacancies in key positions.  They are working to continually identify and assess top talent, recruit top talent, keep top talent, and develop top talent, with the end goal being a pipeline of qualified individuals.

“We need to focus more on leadership development and knowledge transfer to prepare our next generation of leaders.” Although people are continuing to participate in the workforce longer than previous generations, the issue still remains that 10,000 Baby Boomers are reaching retirement age daily.  A new group of leaders will take the reins, and they need to be ready.  Companies are seeing the need to start preparing now. They are identifying high-potential leaders and preparing them for success. Companies want to ensure that their leaders receive leadership training so the leaders have specific skills and competencies as they move up in levels of responsibilities, rather than simply hoping that those individuals have picked up some leadership skills from previous bosses or hoping that trial and error methods work (according to a DDI study, that is how 57% of managers learn).  High potential employees are also being groomed with mentoring programs, so knowledge from the exiting generation can be transferred down.

“We have major challenges with employee engagement.” According to Mercer, 1 of 3 U.S. workers is currently considering leaving his or her organization.  Widespread dissatisfaction in the workplace is a reflection of recent cuts during the recession, and it results in lower job performance and loyalty to companies.  Raising employee engagement remains a challenge for many employers.  Our client leaders are currently applying the Predictive Index® more than ever as a method to assess and alleviate this issue among existing employees.

Post by Oliver Group.