Talent Management in Emirates Airways

This paper analyzes the talent management strategy of Emirates Airways for its cabin crew staff and its effect on the airline's competitive advantage. It discusses the inclusive and exclusive approaches of talent management, the role of training and development, and the challenges faced by the airline. The analysis highlights the importance of talent management in improving employee performance and achieving organizational goals.

Talent Management in Emirates Airways
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Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................2
Overview of case study....................................................................................................................3
Critical Analysis..............................................................................................................................5
Inclusive Approach and Exclusive Approach of Talent Management........................................5
Role of Training and Development in Talent Management Program of Emirates Airways...........8
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................10
References......................................................................................................................................12

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Introduction
The aim of this paper is to analyse how one of the leading airlines in the
world applies its talent management strategy for its cabin crew staff and its
effect on the airline’s competitive advantage. One of the most popular and largest
airlines operating their business operators is Emirates Airways that came into the existence in
1985 with the assistance of Sheikh in UAE. Emirates Airways witnessed complaints
from cabin crew about working hours, deferred annual leave and sometimes
first-class crew were asked to work in economy that is quiet straining and it
led to many resignations (Jones, 2015). However, in 2015 the airline
continued to recruit up to 11,000 new staff, where half of the new recruits
filled cabin crew positions (Gulf News, 2015). Although the airline is still
attracting new recruits, it is losing some of its most valuable source which
are the employees (Kramar & Syed, 2012) raising the question if it is wasting
talents and if talent management is properly applied to high potential staff in
the cabin crew community.
One of the many definitions of talent management is “it is an organisation's
commitment to recruit, retain, and develop the most talented employees available on the job
market” (Canvas, 2019). Cappelli argues that there is a wrong hiring process by managers in
small and large companies (2019). However, SVP cabin crew training claimed that the training
staffs provide a competent and confident training to the cabin crew (Trade Arabia, 2015). The
cabin crew are trained by full time & part time trainers. The full-time trainers are hired internally
or externally, whereas the part time trainers are successful cabin crew applicants who go through

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an assessment centre. Thus, an analysis of the part time trainer’s selection stages shall be
conducted, as well as the three levels of talent management process, skill acquisition, talent
development and talent retention (Karamar & Syed, 2012) to establish if the cabin crew
training’s talent management program is aligned with the airline’s competitive advantage.
Overview of case study
Emirates Airline is continuously improving it performance that is witnessed with 20% per annum
growth and it has not declined. The airline ensures they offer quality as well as delight
experience to their customers with effective travelling experience along with world’s biggest
fleets Airbus A380s and Boeing 777s (Krishnan and Scullion, 2017, pp. 432).
It has been witnessed that company is growing their business operations at
different destinations for which they attract new candidates as well as
motivate the existing employees (Krishnan and Scullion, 2017, pp. 432).

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(Source: Krishnan and Scullion, 2017)
Emirates Airways ensures that they manage the talent within their
organisation but this management become challenge for airline in the
competitive environment. The dynamic surroundings leads to the challenge
related to talent management that consist of learning and development,
leadership, culture, engagement as well as reinventing human resources
(Chen and Chen, 2012, pp.182). The large workforce of Emirate Airways
affects talent management because of lack of proper management, lack of
value to employees, inappropriate skill set and many others. Thus, the airline
provides proper SVP cabin crew training and development program that
contribute to enrich employee’s skills and behaviour. Emirates Airways HR
management team keeps the account that their practice helps the talented
employees to including cabin crew and Airhostess to offer best performance
in order to accomplish goals (Bose and Mugambi, 2017, p. 51). However, the
issues are becoming barrier for airline to conduct better training and
development and talent management program for the betterment of
employees and for organisation performance.

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(Source: Klophaus, 2016)
Critical Analysis
In the dynamic environment every organisation contribute effectively in
managing the talent which might varies from organisation to organisation
based on the needs and requirements. Development and learning is used by
organisation to meet the needs and this tool is well defined as sub-function
of talent management and considered as crucial for organisations to manage
performance of employees (Bose and Mugambi, 2017, p. 51). Employee’s
behaviour of cabin crew within the flight is major challenge for the Emirates
Airways that is required to resolve by company on priority basis because it
affects the delight experience in flight. The issue majorly related to cabin
crew can be resolved by applying various talent management approaches.

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Government ownership and supports the Emirates Airways which made them
giant airways and to enjoys a competitive advantage but company deals with
issue of managing workforce (Al Ariss, Cascio, and Paauwe, 2014, pp.175).
HR department plays a vital role to improve the talent of employees that
requires hard work by HR team. Two approaches of talent management help
organisation to deal with tough situation related to people management.
These Approaches are an inclusive approach and an exclusive approach to
talent management (Al Ariss, Cascio, and Paauwe, 2014, pp.175).
Inclusive Approach and Exclusive Approach of Talent Management
Emirates Airways always worries about the behaviour and culture of cabin crewmembers within
flight and employees on floor. It negatively affects the image among its customer who deserves
to get delight experience (Squalli, 2014, pp.146). In such circumstances, it is
compulsory for organisation to improve culture of workplace and to deliver
the best training and development program. Therefore, Emirates Airways
needs to focus on talent management programs in the organisation.
However, the research reflects that it becomes hard for organisation to
conduct talent management program to acquire soft skills, client experience
and customer query handling and many others all together for cabin crew
employees.
According to the research by Chen and Chen, 2012, the inclusive and
exclusive approach of talent management supports organisation to arrange
for SVP cabin crew training and development programs for employees. Talent

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management in the organisation deeply connected with the type of
leadership. It is also influenced by the relationship between employees and
employers that is crucial for performance management of employees (Chen
and Chen, 2012, pp. 177-181). The inclusive approach of talent management
supports employees to boost their power and increase their potential thus
they can deliver more benefit of their work in the Emirates. The inclusive
approach of talent management helps the employees to connect their
personal goals with the organisational goals (Squalli, 2014, pp.144). This
approach supports organisation to command employees and helps them to
improve their performance according to organisational goals and objectives.
In simple words, the approach of talent management applies to employees
and it would be effective if all employees of the Emirates Airways possess
positive strength that can potentially create benefit for organisation. The
major problem in this type of approach is to apply within organisation, as it
requires huge scare resources such as money, men, material, etc. in
conducting training and development programs (Dries, 2013, pp. 282).
The exclusive approach in talent management focuses on certain categories
of employees and in their performance improvement. The exclusive
approach of talent management helps the employees to enhance their skills,
ability, and knowledge towards their roles and responsibility. In the exclusive
approach of talent management, the organisation considers a small group of
employees or special categories of people who are creating misappropriate
value for the organisation (Gelens, Hofmans, Dries, and Pepermans, 2014,

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pp. 162). The benefit of this approach is that it uses an only inadequate
amount of scare resource in compare to the inclusive approach, which
requires an enormous amount of scare resources for boosting performance
and skill development of employees. Emirates Airways should really look for
talent management program for development of employees by applying both
the approaches of inclusive and exclusive approach. Emirates airways need
to improve the behaviour and culture of its cabin crews and employee who
are working in the organisation. This need of organisation requires the use of
the exclusive approach of talent management program (Egerová, 2013, pp.
4-6).
Emirates Airways has its own training and development centre within
headquarter where it conduct the training for employees to recover their
abilities. The Airways uses this centre to provide training and knowledge to
its employees (Krishnan and Scullion, 2017, pp. 439). Emirates Airways
ensures that training and development programs in the organisation should
be directed by experienced trainer who can provide the in-depth knowledge
and contribute in improving the performance. It has been determined that
exclusive and inclusive approaches of talent management are applied with
the organisation based on different requirements, situations, and scenarios.
Further, talent management approach of inclusive benefits organisation by
providing a common platform for all the employees to develop their talent
and perform in order to archive organisational goals (Krishnan and Scullion,
2017, pp. 439).

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Talent management by HR helps the organisation to fulfil future and
potential places in the top management in the organisation. One of the most
important methodologies used in various organisations for talent
management program is mentoring. It is particularly helpful in staff and
employees skills and overall development (Thunnissen, Boselie, and Fruytier,
2013, pp. 336). Emirates Airways uses management by objective principles
to improve the talent of people in the organisation. The Management by
objective (MBO) is more participative and inclusive in nature that considers
the opinion and ideas of employees in various training and management
programs. Emirates Airways has been facing problems related to the bad
behaviour of people in the flight and poor organisation culture (Krishnan and
Scullion, 2017, pp. 439). The development of the effective workplace culture
with the proper engagement activities during training period contribute in
improvement among employees. The culture of organisation contributes to
reduce high staff turnover and fulfil those places, which is left by people
because of certain causes (Klophaus, 2016, pp. 127). An effective idea for
Emirates Airways is to apply both approaches of talent management and
provide better training and development programs for the employees
(Klophaus, 2016, pp. 126).

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Role of Training and Development in Talent Management Program of
Emirates Airways
Emirates Airways has very strong financial support from its parent organisation and even the
UAE government provides strong support to the company that encourage them to tackle issues
associated with talent management (Lopes, 2016, pp. 221). Talent management helps
the organisation to discover, develop, retain, and use the potential of those
people who are valuable for the organisation and play a key role in solving
any critical situation in the organisation (O’Connell and Bueno, 2018, pp.
260). The organisation focuses on those people who have the ability to
resolve the operational and business issues with their knowledge and skills.
Emirates Airways always prefers to provide a platform for its employees to develop their skills
and knowledge in different training and development program organised by the organisation
(d’Agincourt-Canning, Kissoon, Singal, and Pitfield, 2011, pp. 751). The ICDL program of
Emirates Airways is one of the great examples of it, which focuses on acquiring the skills and
empowering the cabin crewmembers with proper culture in their specific job prospects
(d’Agincourt-Canning, Kissoon, Singal, and Pitfield, 2011, pp. 705). Emirates Airways
considers talent management program and different prospects of
organisation related to talent management as an essential process for
organisation. Talent management practice by HR enhances the skills and
behaviour of cabin crewmembers. The Emirates Airways adopts a systematic
approach of training that is specifically designed for unique category of
employees or a special group of employees (Barkhuizen, Welby-Cooke,

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Schutte, and Stanz, 2014, p. 11). The results of the programs guaranteed for
ensure improved between competence as well as productivity. It leads to the
motivation among the employees to come up with new as well as attractive
ideas that are major contributor of sustaining the talent as well as improving
the operations. Training and development program leads to sharing and
exchange of ideas that contribute in bringing more creative ideas from the
employees to meet the needs of customers within the flight (Barkhuizen,
Welby-Cooke, Schutte, and Stanz, 2014, p. 11).
Emirates Airways prepare its employees to face the most challenging task
and tough situations in the organisation. The Airways is committed to facing
tough challenges that most of organisations avoid accepting in Airways
industry. The inclusive and exclusive talent management approach in
Emirates Airways prepares employees to face tough situation and ensure
organisation that staffs are well motivated, self-sufficient, creative, and
autonomous in organisation (Lopes, 2016, pp. 219). Employees need to
determine strength and positive capabilities to perform the job that can be
polished with the effective use training and development programs. HR
management team of company accepts that some of the employees remain
more innovative as well as creative due to which they can get all knowledge
from the training and development that will further leads to accomplishment
of goals which is pathway for mission of company (Lopes, 2016, pp. 219).

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Conclusion
In the end, this can be concluded from the analysis that today in the
competitive environment not only company like airways but also companies
also get affected. The selected organisation is Emirates Airways that is
leading airways companies in the UAE. However, presently they are dealing
with the difficulties related to behaviour of employees as well as cabin
crewmembers of company towards their valuable clients. These clients are
the motive due to which company perform their operations to maintain
talent in the form of employees. Emirates Airways tried many strict rules and
regulations related to the employee behaviour the company did not succeed
in removing this adverse experience of customers. The cabin crew member
as well as on ground staff requires an effective training with different
programs to acquire skills, retain the talent within company, to offer the
delight experience to their customers and many others. The talent
management program in the organisation helps the people to improve their
capacities to perform with the motive to accomplish the desire goals as well
as objective of company. However, if Emirates Airways focuses on its cultural
development in the organisation by various talent management programs,
then it will lead to success with improved performance for the organisation.
Company should apply inclusive approach of talent management to improve
the skills and capabilities of the whole organisation and employees who need
the training to improve their performance. However, changing the behaviour,
approach, and nature of the work of cabin crewmember leads to the tough

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time for the company that makes them to switch towards the exclusive
approach. Organisation need to use exclusive approach of talent
management that can support organisation to improve the behaviour of its
crewmembers.
This can be concluded in the end that training and development programs in any
organisation are the key parts of the talent management approach that
result in improvement. Emirates Airways also needs to focus on improving its
quality of training and development programs, thus the employees in the
organisation acquire best technique to progress their performance and
enhance their competencies in order to accomplish organisational goals.
Emirates Airways should provide training to its employees on a regular basis
under the experienced trained who can provide the in-depth view of
experience and makes the employees believe that they should think before
acting in front of employees. In addition, the customer oriented training
remains effective as it includes safety, security, and comforts of customers.

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