Search results

This article addresses three concerns about the operationalization and possible effects of exclusive talent management; the core assumptions that underpin and shape talent practices, the problem of fair talent identification and potentially adverse employee reactions.

This is a conceptual paper that integrates empirical research on talent and talent management with ideas from business ethics.

Organizations should not simply assume that they meet the underlying assumptions of talent management. Where the assumptions can reasonably be shown to be valid, then a framework based on a set of principles is suggested to guide organizational approaches towards responsible talent management.

The article provides talent practitioners with a set of principles, or at least some substantive suggestions, to be considered in the design of socially responsible talent management programmes and in programme evaluation.

The article provides guidance for organizations wishing to improve the care of their workforce in relation to strategies of employee differentiation based on performance and potential.

Despite the burgeoning literature on talent management, the topic has not received much attention from an ethical and socially responsible viewpoint. This article adds to that literature and suggests further research particularly concerning the existence of real talent differences on which the entire talent management project is based.

This paper aims to summarise a new model of authentic leadership derived from research with senior leaders in the UK.

The model was developed and tested using three independent samples: 140 business leaders, 54 senior military officers with 390 independent raters and 303 business leaders.

A 15-item, self-report, three-component measure of authentic leadership was obtained from testing across samples. The three components measure an individual’s capacity for self-awareness, self-regulation and ethical behaviour.

The paper contributes to the authentic leadership literature through the creation of a short authentic leadership scale that could be used in leadership research and which simplifies and unifies previous conceptualisations of authentic leadership. The three-pillar model offers guidance to HR practitioners looking to design leadership development interventions.

The purpose of this paper is to emphasise the importance for the practicing ethnographer of responding to unforeseen events that occur during periods of data collection.

An analysis of four unforeseen events occurring during prolonged periods of study amongst workplace cleaners is undertaken and the changes in researcher acceptance resulting from the outcomes of these events are reported.

This paper shows how awareness of the possible incidence of unforeseen events and the ability to carefully yet spontaneously manage the ethnographer’s reaction to them can substantially influence the degree of acceptance achieved by the observer within the group under study.

Though the need for an ethnographer to get close to the participants in a study is well documented, detailed examples as described in this paper are rare. The documentation of the nature and effects of such episodes and how they unfold serve to enhance the credibility of the research.

Guided by institutional theory, this empirical paper examines variations in the adoption of HRM practices among SMEs in three different business sectors (services, manufacturing and trade).

Data from 300 owners/managers representing three business sectors were collected through a survey method.

The results suggest that service SMEs use more formal HRM practices than manufacturing and trade SMEs. Manufacturing SMEs are more formal than trade firms. Results are not affected by firm age.

Social desirability bias may have influenced respondents into portraying a positive image of the organization by inflating HRM sophistication. A further limitation is that the performance of the firms was not measured. As such, it is not possible to judge whether greater HRM formality correlated with improved organizational performance.

This study shows how the business sector shapes HRM practices in Pakistani SMEs. Findings help to inform Pakistan's Small and Medium Enterprise Development Authority (SMEDA) in dealings with manufacturing and trade firms in terms of improving HRM practices.

Given the important role of SMEs in economic development, comparative research on HRM in SME contexts is scarce. Since SMEs are vital for Pakistan's economy, an improved understanding of the sector's approach to human resource development is important. The findings extend the boundaries of prior comparative HRM literature in SMEs by addressing sector influences while controlling for contextual factors.

A core assumption of exclusive talent management is that some employees have more talent than others. Performance data and talent reviews provide some support for this assumption yet there are grounds thinking that a proportion of talent identification is false; average people can be included, talented people can excluded. In an exploration of how talent recognition is exposed to risk, this chapter considers two approaches to talent that are seldom treated together. First, the social construction of talent is developed in ways that highlight the dangers that inevitably arise in talent recognition processes. A social constructionist treatment raises the prospect of ‘empty’ talent pools and the chapter explores the ethical and moral issues arising and questions whether it matters that talent pools might be empty. Second, talent is considered as an innate characteristic of people highlighting that talents are not static and continue evolving up to a point. As such, and if so, it is right that organizations should look periodically for talent across their employee base. The chapter highlights areas for further research into the existence of ‘the talented’ in business contexts and in particular the question of how much talent pools actually contain people with above average talent. The practical implications of appreciating both social and natural bases of talent are considered.

Talent management (TM) is widely seen as a key organizational challenge necessary to sustain competitive advantage. While academia has mostly focused on HRM practices associated with exclusive TM targeting organizational high performers at higher managerial levels, there are reasons why organizations should consider a more inclusive talent management (ITM) approach. They include the growing diversification of organizations and the global workforce caused by demographic changes and mobility across borders, overall talent scarcity and hard to predict market dynamics which all make future talent needs hard to anticipate. Issues such as employee perceptions of organizational justice and fairness are also important. Moreover, existing HRM orthodoxy concerned with investing in the company’s human resource and the wellbeing of employees pushes companies to invest in ITM as a path to a better working environment characterized by openness, trust and overall well-being. Few TM researchers, however, pay sufficient attention to the problems of organizational inequality and social segregation that exclusive TM might occasion and thus disregard how social exclusion and economic inequality continue to characterize many organizations. The ambition of this chapter therefore is to contribute to the development of an inclusive approach to TM. We add to the notion of ITM by bringing in literature on inclusive organizations which is absent from current theoretical development. Building on current conceptualizations in particular by Swailes et al. (2014) and Meyers and Woerkom (2014), we ask: How can literature on organizational inclusion contribute to developing more fair and equal organizations through inclusive TM practices?

In the context of the widespread and extensive use of team work in organizations this study analyses the relationship between individual team role preference and styles of managing interpersonal conflict. Data were collected from 26 work teams containing 169 individuals at two times four months apart. Results show that team role preference is related to Dominating, Integrating, Avoiding, Compromising and Obliging conflict management styles. Moreover, two different effects were observed over time. Firstly, at Time 2 an increase in the role clarity (reduction of role ambiguity) of team members was observed. Secondly, time pressure and team learning processes moderated the relationship between team roles and conflict managing style. Results have theoretical as well as practical implications for team building programmes in search of integrative solutions to conflict.

In October 2018, the Canadian federal government legalized the use of recreational cannabis with a goal to drastically diminish the black-market and the use of cannabis by minors. The attraction of talent to the new industry has been recognized as important to long-term industry success, but there exists a paradox in talent attraction. Key talent must first be screened by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Anyone with serious criminal charges in the past may not be cleared to work in the industry, blocking out experienced cannabis talent. Additionally, some potential talent may not be interested in working the legitimized industry although others may welcome the opportunity to work in it. HR managers have a rare opportunity to be trailblazers by establishing the norms for the industry. Their role should be established in the boardroom, but they will have to demonstrate their value through their ability to build talent in an industry made up largely of SMEs. We use a nested model of macro and micro TM perspectives to analyze the context of this industry. At the macro level we investigate how legalization, government regulation, legitimacy, and reputation affect TM within the micro level context. We suggest how HRM strategies related to attraction, development and retention can impact TM. The integration of the macro and micro level context of TM is paramount to the survival of the new legalized cannabis industry.