CWS 3.0: August 20, 2014

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Offer talent management support & enhance CW productivity

Is it time to extend talent management support to one’s contingent workforce?

Staffing Industry Analysts’ 2014 Buyers Survey confirms use of contingent workers is growing year over year. This year’s survey pinpointed CW usage at around 15 percent of the overall workforce for organizations with 1,000 or more traditional employees. Some respondents even reported CW usage beyond 50 percent! What strategic, transformative considerations does an organization face when CW talent comprises a quarter or more of the operating organization?

There are many, such as whether internal HR engages with managers on CW issues, or attracting and then engaging quality contingent talent.

Both commercial and public enterprises have become very willing to engage contingent workers. Based on that same buyer survey, CW talent is becoming a significant and critical resource helping organizations competitively operate. As this segment of an average organization’s workforce continues to grow, how do companies make sure those workers are competitively skilled and performing at high, required levels?  How does an organization make sure its entire workforce is engaging competitive skill sets at high levels of performance?

One answer is extending talent management support engaged with permanent workers to the contingent workforce or at least some streamlined fashion of it. Talent management focuses on competitive work performance through measurement, education and coaching. The goal is to ensure all operating resources are competitive and performing at a high level. Certainly there is a lot to consider in implementing a talent management support strategy for CW talent.  It will most probably look like a streamlined version of a traditional talent management support depending on skill development impact/requirement, length of service, and cost/benefit analysis. But if talent management support is required to keep permanent workers competitive, then wouldn’t CW talent need similar support?

An argument against this kind of thinking is the assumption that any engaged CW talent should have the required skill sets to do the job and service being paid for should not have to be measured. In an employment market that is abundant with top-notch talent, this may be an acceptable CW management model, but not so much in a competitive employment marketplace.

Some important benefits can be secured by extending some talent management support to CW talent. One is the creation of CW talent brand loyalty and workplace preference for top-notch CW talent. The best CW talent in the marketplace will look to engage and focus their work practice for organizations they like to work for. Offering some talent management support to enhance the skill capability and performance of a contingent worker, in some controlled fashion, will go a long way in producing engagement and brand loyalty.

Another key benefit is creating some streamlined but formal talent performance evaluations. Certainly, this helps CW talent improve their future performance on company engagements; it also creates a documented evaluation inventory of vetted CW talent that has operated successfully.

Future competitive CW program management will move from just a vendor management-centered role to incorporating a higher degree of actual CW talent management strategies such as CW talent “mobility” programs. In an effort to support those evolving strategies, one will need more detailed info on CW talent that has successfully completed engagements for the organization.

Talent management investments are strategic assets/support deployed by companies to keep their workforce competitive and performing at a high level. So it makes theoretical sense that the entire workforce, including the growing ranks of CW talent in the organization, engages talent management support to create overall competitive performance.