When discussing overall business strategies, how deeply does your organization consider the people and skills necessary for success? Do conversations revolve only around headcounts and external hires, or do they also include employee retention? Is the aim merely to maintain staff in their current roles, or are there opportunities for movement and promotion within the organization? Even this subset of questions barely scratches the surface of what you could be asking when developing your talent strategy. Using a holistic approach to align talent to organizational objectives is essential for your organization’s success. Identify the Skills to Meet Critical Organizational Objectives and Define Success Metrics If your organization is hoping to launch a new service or product, you’ll need to identify the skills needed to make those new offerings successful. Notice that we noted skills and not people. Identifying specific skills opens up various options to bridge any skills gaps, as we'll explore below. It's equally vital to define success metrics that align with these skills. For instance, if your initiative involves community engagement, your metrics should reflect community activities rather than sales figures. If there’s a mismatch between skills and metrics, refocus on your overarching organizational objectives to realign them. Furthermore, ensure that your organizational objectives correspond with your organizational values. Implementing objectives that contradict your values can severely impact your organizational culture. While some cultures thrive on speed and constantly creating new projects, others might prioritize consensus. Although no culture is inherently superior, employees will notice if actions don't align with stated values, especially if a shift in organizational culture is on the horizon. Preparing for discussions about why these changes are necessary is crucial. Match People to the Skills After identifying the necessary skills, the next step is to connect people with these skills to your objectives. This doesn't mean you should only consider hiring externally. Look internally for employees who already possess or could develop these skills through training, whether internal or external. Consider engaging retired employees as consultants, investing in new systems to free up skilled staff, or simplifying processes to better utilize existing talents. Alternatively, hiring or contracting skilled individuals externally is also an option. Train Managers and Leaders to Provide Feedback Training your managers and leaders on how to provide effective feedback is vital for success. They need to be able to strike a balance. If they’re too soft when a correction is needed, the feedback will be overlooked. If they’re too harsh or micromanage, employee motivation and productivity could drop. Additionally, celebrating wins is important, but it should feel genuine rather than feeling like participation trophies. A balanced approach to feedback helps teams excel by providing the right level of challenge and support, fostering engagement through real-time recognition and constructive realignment. It is also important to note that with real-time feedback for both recognition and realignment, employees will be more engaged in their work. They will see that their managers and leaders are genuinely interested in their contributions and are committed to helping them develop their skills and confidence, which ultimately leads to higher retention rates. Assess & Iterate Even though managers should be providing feedback along the way so that goals can be met, it is still necessary to have an overarching assessment of goal progression and if current actions will lead to success. Take this time to identify any unexpected barriers or windfalls and check if the skills, metrics, and objectives are still aligned. This is also when organizations should maintain the items that have worked well and iterate on items that need improvement. In addition to assessing the goals, managers need to be assessing their employees. Managers should work closely with employees to understand if there are barriers that need to be removed and if there are opportunities for training that could enhance performance. If there are performance issues, managers need to take the time to uncover the source of the issue. Sometimes they’re fixable and other times tough decisions about an employee’s future with the team might be necessary. Additional Considerations Your talent strategy should also include succession planning. Determine if you’ll need to replace roles due to retirements or resignations and identify who could step in. If certain roles are no longer necessary, plan how to phase out these duties while retaining any beneficial aspects such as institutional knowledge, operating procedures, or ideas for future use. Moreover, consider tailoring total rewards to meet the unique needs of your staff. Not all organizations can compete with top market salaries, but creative compensation, such as pet insurance for dog owners, travel rewards for high performers, or flexible work schedules, can add significant value. Final Thoughts Talent strategy encompasses far more than hiring and retention. It's about reinforcing or reshaping organizational culture, uniting employees around common goals, and enhancing operations through ongoing development. A robust talent strategy is not just beneficial; it's a competitive advantage. -- Winsami Solutions & Consulting is here to help with your organization's talent strategy. Our mission is to support organizations in adapting their People & Culture practices to meet the needs of an evolving workforce.

When you picture the activity within an anthill, you likely imagine ceaseless hustle as every ant contributes to the survival of the colony. Yet, surprisingly, research shows that these "hard working" communities actually harbor quite a few slackers who do very little most of the time. It seems counterintuitive that the colonies which thrive on production and efficiency would have lazy members. However, studies indicate that these lazy ants serve a critical function. In times of disaster, they step up to relieve their fatigued companions and maintain crucial colony operations. This trade-off between short-term productivity and long-term survival may offer a valuable lesson for our own organizations. Of course, humans are not ants, and our tasks differ significantly, but consider the benefits of incorporating redundancy in human teams. We already use this strategy in computing and sports—why not in our labor force? Imagine the potential of an organization with cross-trained employees ready to step in or handle extra workloads, allowing others to recuperate as needed. Often, businesses view such redundancy as an unnecessary expense, but reimagining it as a safeguard against burnout and a means to prevent single-points of failure could change that perception. Burnout diminishes productivity, engagement, and retention. In the U.S., employees often resist taking necessary breaks due to fears of falling behind, feeling guilty about burdening colleagues, or even losing their job. If a company could mitigate these fears and encourage breaks, the slight decrease in efficiency might be a worthwhile trade for improved employee health and organizational resilience. Likewise, treating a workforce as a team means ensuring no member is stretched to the point of injury. Keeping a team fresh and effective requires depth in its lineup. So, what does this approach look like in practice? Identify Vital Tasks, Ensure Coverage, and Cross-Train Identifying and safeguarding critical operations against any single point of failure is essential. This involves ensuring multiple employees can perform crucial tasks, providing a robust foundation for operational continuity. Assess Employee Workloads and Add Staff as Needed If employees are consistently maxed out or working overtime, review their workloads. A single employee's unexpected departure could severely strain the rest of the team or several teams, impacting overall productivity. Also, consider time for breaks beyond the legally mandated ones—space for socializing, moving around, or quiet reflection can rejuvenate workers without severely disrupting operations. If this seems too disruptive, it may be time to consider adding people to your team Document and Review Procedures The fear of falling behind can deter employees from taking necessary breaks. By documenting procedures, tasks can be performed consistently by others during someone’s absence. Regular reviews of these procedures can also identify opportunities for improvement or automation. By allowing some "slack" in your organization, you might see a dip in immediate efficiency, but you'll likely gain much in terms of long-term operational health and employee well-being. Let’s take a cue from nature and make our workplaces more sustainable and supportive. -- Winsami Solutions & Consulting is here to help with your organization's workforce strategy. Our mission is to support organizations in adapting their People & Culture practices to meet the needs of an evolving workforce. Resources: https://phys.org/news/2017-03-slackers-saviours.html#:~:text=They%20found%20that%20when%20the,workers'%20different%20thresholds%20to%20tasks . https://www.nature.com/articles/srep20846 https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/09/170908205356.htm https://www.apa.org/topics/healthy-workplaces/workplace-burnout https://fortune.com/well/2023/12/13/happy-workers-pto-time-off-guilt-vacation/ https://www.shrm.org/topics-tools/news/employee-relations/encourage-employees-to-take-time-year