Talent Management in Auto Manufacturing

For an auto manufacturer that wanted to design and implement Talent Management, the first phase of the project was to conduct a gap analysis that identified gaps between practices currently in place and those needed to effectively manage talent for the future. A combination of document analysis, review of existing metrics on employee competence and job satisfaction, interviews with selected vice presidents and all HR process owners, and focus group interviews with line employees and managers was used. The HR process examined included performance management, job descriptions, compensation models, technical training, leadership development, succession planning, and recruitment. Analysis identified strengths and weaknesses of each practice, missing elements that good talent management would require, and made recommendations for improving each process, as well as outlining the steps needed to coordinate the various HR processes into a cohesive talent management system.

Career Development for Engineering

The engineering function across all divisions of a medical instruments producer wanted to move from a promotional system based on job grades and time-in-position to one based on competence. The project included identification of the competencies required of engineers to keep the company competitive in a changing marketplace, a restructuring of its job hierarchy into a work/roles matrix, and the meshing of this information into a comprehensive approach to developing engineers at all levels. Unique to the project was the emphasis on training managers to recognize the competencies in work situations and to coach employees in their development.

Strategic Development to Increase Market Competitiveness

A jet engine producer wanted to ensure that its leaders were prepared to meet the challenges of an increased competitive marketplace. In the course of the project it was discovered that lack of strategic information was causing a commensurate lack of alignment in the workforce resulting in a serious hampering of productivity. Our approach was to implement an ?align and engage? methodology that cascaded from the executive level to all employees. Managers were taught to lead workgroup meetings that a) identified specific business challenges, b) identified the competencies needed to execute on them, and c) created work group development plans to close gaps between need and ?on hand? capabilities. The process included 360 assessment with feedback and individual development planning for managers and employees. Success was attributed to the impact of 1) increased clarity of business goals, and 2) role modeling by senior leaders.

Fostering Development Agency-Wide

The Financial Management Division of the Farm Services Agency needed help creating a strategic training plan. Specific components included: designing a strategic development process suitable to the Division; creating competency models for professional series and technician/specialist/ administrative support series positions; designing and developing Strategic Development Guides for Professional, Technician and Manager/Leader series positions; developing competency assessment tools that enable managers to determine training needs and priorities for the Strategic Training Plan; and creating a communication strategy and plan to introduce the guides and competencies.