Proceedings of the 20th International Academic Conference, Madrid

FACTORS AFFECTING THE APPLICATION OF TALENT MANAGEMENT

EMMERENTIA NICOLENE BARKHUIZEN, NICO ERIC SCHUTTE

Abstract:

The field of talent management has received considerable attention in management and practitioner literature over the past two decades. Most scholars are in agreement that talent is a key to the sustainability and competitiveness of any country. However empirical research on talent management and its potential contribution in Southern Africa is limited. This paper reports on the available research of the significance of talent management and the subsequent factors affecting the effective application thereof in South African organisations. This paper is motivated from the fact that Southern Africa as a developing continent is in need of effective talent management for sustainable growth and economic development. Our research shows that a great diversion of opinion still exists on a suitable definition for “talent”. As a result managers and practitioners are challenged to apply an inclusive versus and exclusive approach to talent management. Moreover our findings also highlight that management commitment towards talent remains a fundamental problem in many Southern African organisations and have a subsequent impact on the retention of scarce skills. The effective implementation and execution of talent management practices requires the adherence to legislative policies and frameworks. Our research paints a bleak picture as far as the effective and ethical applications of labour legislation towards talented employees are concerned. Gender inequality is slow to be eradicated in male dominated work environments. Age differentials prevail with talent management practices being mostly focused on Generation X employees as opposed to an older generation workforce. Talent Management also have a significant impact on individual and organisational level outcomes. We found that that poor talent management practices have a negative impact on psychological contracts, organisational commitment, work engagement, motivation, job satisfaction, happiness, meaningfulness, well-being, and retention of employees in various settings. For the organisation talent management can result in improved employee performance and subsequent quality of service delivery. In conclusion we present an integrated talent management strategy that provides a holistic guideline for how to apply the talent management process from start to finish.

Keywords: Economic growth, Legal compliance, Talent, Talent Management

DOI: 10.20472/IAC.2015.020.010

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