2024: Talent Evolution Meets Revolution

The economic landscape has been characterized by logical progression, with consumer demand remaining robust, a relatively stable business climate, and stock market performance that has exceeded expectations. Salaries have seen a notable uptick, with an average increase of over 5%. Employees switching jobs and employers have benefited from even higher wage growth, often exceeding 8%. The job market is flourishing, evident from the exceptionally low unemployment rate of just 3.8%, indicating a plethora of job opportunities.

However, this bright scenario is somewhat dimmed by the significant challenges in employee engagement. A prevalent sense of burnout, fatigue, and stress is apparent among employees, many of whom feel overburdened by their workload. This situation may be a partial residual effect of the pandemic, including the hurdles of remote work and the complex dynamics of hybrid working models.

Additionally, there's a significant change in the mindset of younger employees, who are now focusing more on achieving a balance between their personal life and work, rather than solely pursuing aggressive career growth. The trend of 'quiet quitting,' where employees avoid burnout by not going above and beyond but still fulfilling their job responsibilities, is becoming more prevalent. This shift is echoed in the sentiment of working proportionately to one's salary. Notably, this era has seen the introduction of the four-day workweek and a rise in union activities advocating for fair wages, transparency in pay, and opportunities for career transformation.

Within this tight labor market, the scarcity of talent poses a challenge. However, advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) offer a silver lining. The past year, possibly even the decade, has witnessed AI as a groundbreaking force, revolutionizing every aspect of the Employee Lifecycle. Organizations across the board are now focused on integrating AI into their strategies, a movement that is equally mirrored in the strategies of people operations teams. AI transformation is poised to reshape how we approach talent management and employee engagement in the modern workplace.

Themes within the realm of talent strategy across the last year have included decisions on when to 'build, borrow or buy' talent to balance cost-effectiveness and efficiency. There has also been pressures from executive leadership to enhance the measurement of employee productivity and outcomes, with stronger performance metrics and increased accountability, top to bottom. Lastly, we saw the development of agile and cross-functional teams or pod structures within organizations to create a dynamic delivery of business needs, to better serve customers and maximize talent utilization.

Build, Borrow or Buy Talent

The crux of any good talent strategy is knowing what you are optimizing for. ‘Build, Borrow or Buy’ is a framework used to plan for talent needs within an organization. The underpinnings of these choices are dependent on the geographies a business operates within and the opportunities those talent markets provide, as well as the cost of talent and the skill sets you require to fulfill the “jobs to be done”. Organizations can no longer grow at all costs, there has been a shift to responsible growth. This means; well planned, well designed and well executed talent strategies that are aligned to business needs.

Build: Building talent refers to the development of existing employees' skills and capabilities through learning and development tools and programs. It’s about investing in your workforce to cultivate the skills and knowledge needed for future opportunities and initiatives. It's often a longer-term strategy focused on employee growth, succession planning, and fostering a culture of continuous learning and development, centered around a growth mindset. Gartner shared that 26% of CEOs have ranked talent shortage as the top damaging factor to their organizations in 2024. A key tactic in addressing this is a focus on reskilling and upskilling the talent that has already chosen, invested and is committed to our organizations.

We saw the emergence of skills-based organizations in 2022, as coined by Josh Bersin, which paved the way for the creation of internal talent marketplaces and dynamic career pathways in 2023. In such organizations, the entire spectrum of hiring, development and reward structures, is intricately tied to specific skills. This approach essentially transforms companies into incubators for talent cultivation and growth, maximizing the potential of internal talent mobility. It empowers employees to enhance their knowledge, skills, and career trajectories from within the organization, diminishing the reliance on external education and training or job shifts to achieve professional advancement and development.

Borrow: Borrowing talent involves using external resources or talent on a temporary basis. This could be through outsourcing, contracting, freelancing, or even partnerships with other organizations. Talent is borrowed to address short to medium-term skill needs or to handle peak workloads, without the long-term commitment and costs that come with an employment contract. It offers flexibility and access to a wide range of skills and expertise that might not be present within the organization.

Buy: Buying talent means hiring new employees. This is to either fill existing gaps or to bring in new skills, experience and perspectives, not currently available within the organization. This method tends to be quicker than developing skills in-house, particularly when seeking highly specialized or senior-level expertise, or in situations where an organization is aiming for rapid scale. Buying talent can necessitate an extensive recruitment process, entailing both direct and indirect expenses, however, at times, this is a necessary route for a business.

Measured Efficiency, Productivity and Results

In light of the prevailing economic conditions, leadership teams have been heavily emphasizing efficiency and productivity of its people and processes, to enhance profitability. Adhering to the principle of, “what can't be measured can't be managed,” it's essential to have quantifiable performance metrics for both individuals and teams. These metrics and KPIs need to be well-defined in terms of input and output to accurately gauge their impact on the organization's bottom line. As companies continually assess talent competence and capability to meet the needs of the business into 2024, this will be crucial to ensuring all talent decisions are data-backed and informed.?

One of the most critical skills of a high efficiency, high productivity and results-focused culture is ruthless prioritization. This skill is about understanding where and how to focus your time to have the largest impact. It’s about giving focus to what’s important over urgent and deliberately setting aside or deprioritizing less critical activities. This approach is paramount to environments where you need to be resourceful, deliver on mission critical deadlines and keep up with a rapid pace of ouputs and innovation. Mastering this skill is invaluable and will undoubtedly lead to higher levels of efficiency, productivity and in turn, results.?

The Contextualization of Job Architecture

Contextualizing job architecture involves tailoring the structure, terminology, and organization of roles and career paths to fit the specific context of a company, including its strategy, culture, and operational environment. This process requires taking into account a range of factors such as the organization's scale, industry, business objectives, workforce characteristics, and prevailing market trends. Clear and contextualized job architecture allows for seamless internal talent mobility within an organization's internal talent marketplace.

Traditional job and organizational structures, modeled after the industrial age's emphasis on large-scale production, are evolving. Historically, companies were divided into specialized departments like R&D, product management, and sales, each with its own hierarchy. Employees would aim to climb these ladders in their respective fields. These structures shaped many HR practices we know today, from hiring to performance management. However, the world's most valuable companies are moving away from this model, as it tends to be slow and cumbersome. In today's fast-paced environment, navigating through these hierarchies to bring new ideas to fruition can be excessively time-consuming.

In today's economy, value is generated through innovation, speed to market, customer engagement, and unique, high-value offerings. Traditional hierarchical structures are not well-suited for these objectives. Modern companies need to adopt flatter, more interconnected designs. Simplifying job architecture enables greater internal talent mobility. Encouraging cross-functional teams and breaking down silos are crucial. This involves forming agile groups that combine different functions like product management, design, engineering, sales, and marketing. The rise of pod structures and agile groups beyond just engineering is a testament to this change, enhancing customer service, decision-making, and overall business performance.

As we look in the rearview, the talent themes that have emerged will continue to gain traction and momentum in 2024. The true measure of success will lie in organizational endurance – the ability to smoothly ride the waves of change, backed by strong leadership and effective talent management practices. The challenges ahead, which will present significant opportunity, include the achievement of responsible growth through activities such as, mergers and acquisitions, as well as organic means, realizing profitability, and maintaining a workforce that is not only productive but also deeply engaged. For leaders, the key to navigating these challenges will be maintaining a laser-sharp focus, committing to the right strategies, and ensuring that their teams are perfectly aligned with these goals. This is a time for inspirational leadership, strategic foresight, and unwavering dedication to excellence.