Developments over the last year showed that during this crisis the companies which were able to sustain their economic growth were those who had a smart policy in managing their human capital – those employers who view their human capital to be their most valuable asset.
Striving to save costs is fully understandable. It is clear that these efforts will also affect the headcount of employees and impact in the area of compensation and benefits. Nevertheless, it is necessary to undertake these decisions cautiously – as their effect on the economic health of a company might be immediate and less than desirable. Since the beginning of the crisis many companies have seen that a radical and ill-considered headcount cut can mean short-term savings, but can prove to be a fatal mistake from the long-term point of view. The reason? Only the best people are able to navigate a company out of the turbulence caused by the crisis. Not retaining key people can mean a weakening in the company’s market position and even worse – strengthening the competition.
Human resource departments should be supporting their CEOs in several ways to retain managers and key specialists – providing these employees with clear career paths, continuous development, focused job-related training, effective compensation structures and recognition and appreciation from managers. Co-essential to the retention of key people remains the attraction and effective development of new talents and, subsequently, smart succession planning. Having no leadership succession plan can cause quite a bit of trouble – as talent is the source of sustained innovation and the basis for competitive differentiation, performance and value-creation.
Talent management enables organizations to continually challenge the market and achieve growth – and growth is the essential characteristic of a winning organisation at any time – not only during ‘depression’. Thus, working with talents and creating realistic succession plans is a long-term activity.
Smart HR policies, acquiring the best talents, being able to retain key staff and when necessary searching to find the best managers in the market have been proven to be the key elements of success in tough economic times.
By Peter Pliešovský, Managing Director, ISG spol. s r.o.
For more information visit: www.isg.sk
