Talent Camp and the BIG “What If”!

Written by Susan on Thursday, 10 of September , 2009 at 4:10 pm

How effectively is today’s HR function meeting organizational business needs? How about the individual and collective needs and capability of the organization’s workforce?  How can a global CEO study indicate that Talent is the most critical imperative, ranking high above access to capital, (see pg 24 of the exec summary) and at the same time reports are emerging that upwards of 60% of employees would leave their jobs when the economy improves? Increasingly, Talent is disconnected, underutilized, over managed, dispensable and bored.  And, companies are not realizing the value in their workforce by merely creating a place for work to be done. Where is the excitement around business?  Around new ideas? Innovation?  Collaboration? Competition? How frequently have talented employees left a company to give birth to a successful venture on their own - could the idea not be born internally?  Can we create a true entrepreneurial culture that supports internal incubators and reward innovation? What’s driving the disconnect and when will business get serious about the value to be realized in attracting, engaging and leveraging individual and collective capability?  When will organizations recognize there is greater reward than risk in hiring for potential rather than always hiring to fit the round peg in the round hole and that the same approach applied to successful, innovative business practices can and should be applied to talent practices?

As the ecosystem within which companies operate continues to test and challenge the ability of organizations of all sizes to attract, engage and leverage talent how has the HR function stepped up to lead the way?  Today’s business environment persistently demands more from people and their companies.  What is the new leadership model at the intersection of HR, Talent and business? And, yet, how many companies have truly evolved their internal environments to navigate the waters of the business environment they operate in today and will be faced with tomorrow?  This article from BusinessWeek raises some very relevant questions about R&D.  Where is the relationship between R&D leaders, the HR function, the CFO and CEO to set a vision that prepares for the future?  Any business issue today is also a Talent issue.  How will we create adaptive practices that support continuous evolution that better keep pace with an increasingly shifting world with so much to offer, so many opportunities and filled with so many unique challenges?

The Big What If
I like to ask “what if” questions, a lot! It helps me imagine different realities, explore new possibilities and develop differentiated solutions.  The BIG “what if” question I’ve been tossing around?  Here’s part one - What if the HR function didn’t exist? Lets just imagine this for a minute.  Some how business has been able to survive all these years without an HR function.  New employees were still hired.  Internally, people were paid on time and appropriately.  Employees had access to development opportunities and internal movement happened as needed/desired.  Things just happened, maybe not in an exciting way but we plodded along and managed.  Now, part two - What if the HR function didn’t exist today BUT a business need was identified that recognized there was a synergistic relationship to be leveraged with talent in a way that would drive adaptive business practices. That would drive personal engagement, job satisfaction, creativity, collaboration, innovation and competitive advantages stemming from a talent-centric organization aligned through shared values and a clear vision.

Needless to say, this is a BIG what if!  It’s also a critical question to explore during uncertain times that, to a large degree, has widened the gap between the organization and its current and prospective employees.  The result of which does not look good from any perspective - and certainly not if you gaze into the future and wonder what will be different.

Talent Camp
About a year ago I began kicking around the idea of Talent Camp - bringing together an intimate group of keen minds with a unique orientation and passion for Talent, business and the HR discipline. All things happen for a reason and in this case I’m particularly pleased that circumstances resulted in Talent Camp being a 2009 venture because there are a few people
involved that I didn’t know last year.  On October 18^th, 12 incredible people will come together for 3 1/2 days to explore the BIG “what if”.  Collectively we have more years, depth and breadth of business and HR experience than I can begin to measure.  We also share a strong passion for what could exist at the intersection of talent and business to serve both interests and advance organizational capability and effectiveness.  We’ll be gathering in a 4500 square foot beach house on the Oregon Coast to immerse in a dialogue around our big “what if” question, that will no doubt experience the ebb and flow of progress, frustration, curiosity, pain, breakthroughs and clarity as we craft our talent function vision.

What can you expect out of Talent Camp? Well, that’s something that we’ll be defining while we’re together.  My goal, hope and desire is that we’ll be publishing a collective work outlining the talent function required for business in the 21^st century.

I am so pleased and excited about the incredible collection of people who have committed to join me at Talent Camp.  I’m sure you’ll be hearing more from them and can follow each on Twitter (their names are linked) and look for #TalentCamp to follow the conversation.

Briand DeGroodt
Franny Oxford
Jeff Hunter - see what Jeff has to say about Talent Camp
Joe Gerstandt
Lance Haun
Laurie Ruettimann
Mike Johnson
Ron McManmon
Shauna Moerke
Steve Fogarty - see what Steve has to say about Talent Camp
Suzy Tonini
and me, Susan Burns

More risk exists in standing still than in moving forward. We are the future and its time to craft the vision at the intersection of Talent, HR and Business. Talent Camp!

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