Human Capital Development and Talent Management: Challenges and Mechanisms for Organizational Performance

This research essay discusses the challenges associated with succession planning, the use of TREADs in building a high-performance organization, and mechanisms line managers can adopt to foster organizational performance.

MAXWELL AMSTERDAM
Formative Assessment 1: Human Capital Development and Talent Management
Research Essay

1.Introduction
Human Resource Management (HRM) is a technique for making the most of one's
human resources. HRM is often found in larger firms, and its major goal is to align
company goals with employee goals. For a company to attain its goals, it must have
employees who will help it attain them (HRD Connect, 2019). TREADs are used by
HRM to fulfill company goals, construct a high-performance organization, and create
an appealing employer brand. TREADs are current investments made by a company
in the form of training, rewards, education, assignments, and development. However,
the majority of these investments will not yield a return until the future. An
organization uses employee classification based on his or her actual potential for
adding value to the organization to correctly invest its TREADs (Berger and Berger,
2018).
Utilizing TREADs in building a high-performance organization and creating a
compelling employer brand.
TREADs consist of :
● Appropriately allocating training
● Rewards
● Education
● Assignments
● Development (Berger and Berger, 2018).
Challenges associated with succession planning in your organization.
The Most Important Reasons for Succession Planning (Day, 2007).
● Change that is quick, radical, and sporadic (Day, 2007).
● Challenges that are becoming increasingly complex (Day, 2007).
● At lower levels, there are more leadership responsibilities (Day, 2007).
● Recruiting and retaining the best employees (Day, 2007).
Challenges:
● Inadequate training and development: This results in an individual who is
unprepared for a promotion, resulting in succession planning gaps. When
promotions are not made in a timely and systematic manner, workers become
dissatisfied and have little grasp of what succession planning entails. A
company's ability to create future leaders is hampered by a lack of continually

developing talent within the business. As a result of a shortage of needed
abilities to fill more senior roles, there is a vacuum in succession planning.
Companies are urged to find high-potential individuals and develop them for
business continuity and simple succession
(Murimi, Mercy and Munjuri, 2018).
● Biased selection: Familiarity makes people comfortable and managers are no
exception to this. It is very easy for males to have a bias for males and the
reverse is true. In a group where all managers are male, they will tend to have
a bias in the selection of a male making it difficult for a woman to get selected.
This is not a bias out of intentional discrimination but because of the comfort
of familiarity. When selecting people required for different levels in an
organization, the person specifications of the positions should be very clear,
and objective comparison is done against individuals to ensure the best
fit(Murimi, Mercy and Munjuri, 2018).
● Deciding who to promote: With proper organization, you may place the perfect
individual in the job without upsetting your other prospects. While someone
may begin at their current level or position, this does not always imply that
they have the abilities or qualities required to go up the ladder. One possible
solution is to identify potential candidates early in the succession planning
process (Generator Talent Group, 2017).
● Maintaining company morale: The stigma of discussing succession can stifle
free debate and jeopardize the relevance of succession planning in
organizations. Every organization should have an open discussion about who
will take over the reins next. Succession planning must be a straightforward
and open process in order to be effective. One of the negative consequences
of succession planning is the influence it may have on corporate morale.
Mechanisms line managers can adopt and implement to foster organizational
performance.
The Role of the Line Manager
The phrase "line manager" usually refers to personnel in the organization's bottom
management echelons (for example, team leader, supervisor roles). The line
manager is a term that refers to the position that represents the first level of
management and to whom non-managerial personnel report. Managers, front-line

managers, supervisors, team leaders, and project leaders are all terms used to
describe line managers. The line manager's traditional role includes I day-to-day
people management, (ii) managing budgets and operational costs in their area of
work, (iii) planning and organizing work allocation and preparing the roster of
employees under them, (iv) providing technical expertise and guidance to the
employees under them, (v) performing quality control, and (vi) measuring output.
Line managers play a crucial role in people management, which includes
implementing HR (human resource) procedures on the job, monitoring attendance,
coaching and development, punishment and grievances, involvement and
communication, and performance review. Line managers play an unquestionably
important role in putting HR (human resource) practices into practice on the shop
floor. Because line managers control the work of individual workers and are directly
accountable for the fulfillment of organizational objectives, their work has a direct
impact on the organization's success. They accomplish achievements by forming
teams inside the company. In comparison to their subordinates, line managers have
a higher level of accountability. They are responsible to the organization's top
management for the job done by individual workers. Line managers, on the other
hand, are at the bottom of the management structure. Employees that report to line
managers typically do not have management or supervisory responsibilities in the
company (Anon, n.d.).
Mechanisms to foster Organisational Performance
● Assessing and Selecting Talent (Berger and Berger, 2018)
● Performance Planning (Berger and Berger, 2018)
● Coaching and developing talent (Berger and Berger, 2018)
● Rewarding and recognizing talent (Berger and Berger, 2018)
Assessing and Selecting Talent
Structured interviews: The structured interview is still the most common method of
assessing ability, and the results are rewarding. However, combining a structured
interview with another talent evaluation approach may assist to enhance your 'hit
rate.' The average interview might be predictable and dull for the interviewer, as well
as nerve-racking for the candidate - but it pays off if the findings are positive
(www.webrecruit.co, 2017).

Work simulation: Work simulations are an excellent type of pre-hire evaluation. You
may not only acquire firsthand knowledge of a candidate's decision-making abilities,
but you can also observe how they would function in your job. Typically, simulation
entails assigning candidates a task to accomplish using job-specific abilities
(www.webrecruit.co, 2017).
Problem-solving tests: Testing candidates' cognitive capacity and reasoning abilities
is another effective approach to see whether they are a suitable fit for your post. This
approach is inexpensive and can indicate an individual's intellect, understanding, and
leadership abilities. Some candidates, however, may underperform as a result of the
pressure(www.webrecruit.co, 2017).
Personality tests: Identifying applicants' cognitive processes and behavioral
attributes is beneficial for a variety of professions. You can quickly identify and
assess useful characteristics like inventiveness, attendance, and leadership
alongside the attributes of other applicants. Personality tests, on the other hand, are
ineffective as a sole method of assessing a candidate's fitness for a position and
should only be used as a supplementary activity(www.webrecruit.co, 2017).
Unstructured interviews: Unstructured interviews, with no predetermined formal
questions and a more casual setting, are frequently ideal for creative or new roles.
They not only allow the employer greater leeway to steer the interview in a certain
direction, but they also give the candidate more opportunities to express themselves
(www.webrecruit.co, 2017).
Assessing experience: Most roles require at least some industry expertise, but
restricting your posts to individuals with X years of experience in X industry might be
detrimental to talent recruiting. This might effectively limit you to applicants that are a
poor fit for your company culture, rather than less experienced individuals who would
fit in well with your firm's ideals(www.webrecruit.co, 2017).
Performance Planning
Individual performance expectations and goals are set, and people are encouraged
to focus their efforts toward reaching institutional goals through performance
planning. Setting a mission, performance goals and plans, work-related
competencies, and supporting behaviors are all part of performance planning.
Performance planning is the first step in the performance management process for
both the company and the individual. Together, the supervisor and subordinate

determine what the employee should be doing for the scheduled period, how well the
job should be done, why it has to be done, and other details such as the employee's
level of power and decision-making. Although performance planning is done once a
year, it may be revisited at any time during the year if the need arises. At least one
meeting between the supervisor and each subordinate is required to establish a
performance plan. Group meetings can sometimes be utilized to discuss certain
project assignments before moving on to more thorough individual sessions. The
primary goal of performance planning is to make work duties more clear for individual
employees (Masenya, Mokoele and Makalela, n.d.).
Coaching and developing talent
Talent development techniques include all potential strategic interventions in the
company for developing workers in a more cohesive and tactical manner to assure
talent availability in the long term. The major advantages of talent development
include the effective implementation of company strategies, competitive advantage,
and revenue, as well as the enhancement of employees' self-motivation and
self-organization. Talented personnel are overjoyed to be affiliated with a business
that recognizes their contributions and gives possibilities for advancement.
Rewarding and Recognising Talent
Rewarding and acknowledging employees has been shown to boost workplace
productivity. It motivates them to go the additional mile. Workplace engagement
fosters a sense of community and serves as a motivator for high performance. It is
critical to ensure that great achievers are paid and acknowledged on time.
Employees are more likely to perform well when they are acknowledged and
rewarded for their efforts. It promotes the development and professional
advancement by putting the person in a position to do more and improve their work
performance. It boosts staff morale and encourages them to go above and beyond
the company's expectations. Employers and workers have a more favorable
connection when they are rewarded and recognized. An empowered employee who
produces good outcomes will benefit the employer. A recognized and compensated
employee, on the other hand, will become confident and happy with their work.
Improving staff morale can also help to decrease turnover rates. Employees
converse and exchange their experiences with people from different firms. When
workers speak positively about a firm that acknowledges and compensates them, the

company creates a positive brand. Organically, the firm becomes known for its best
HR practices, which can have an influence on how it interacts with external
stakeholders. A firm that acknowledges and rewards its personnel will be renowned
not just for its productivity, but also for its strong leadership and people management
abilities (Darwinbox, n.d.
Conclusion
Building an employer brand is not something your firm can expect to complete in a
single day. Instead, you should concentrate on creating an outstanding plan that can
be implemented throughout your business. Then, your company may continue to use
this approach in the future. According to research, the key to encouraging employees
to regard an employer's brand as good is consistency. If your workers notice that
your workplace is outstanding on a regular basis, they will spread the word in a way
that will aid in the expansion of your firm. As a consequence, take your time and be
consistent to achieve the greatest outcomes.

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