Analysis of Talent Management Challenges at HSBC Australia

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of the talent management challenges faced by HSBC Australia. It examines the impact of economic, technological, and cultural factors, including globalization and the digital revolution, on human resource practices. The report delves into demographic challenges, the importance of cultural and diversity intelligence, and the legislative framework for equal opportunity. It also explores contemporary management approaches to enhance organizational effectiveness and discusses the benefits and consequences of corrective measures for efficient talent management. The study emphasizes the need for HSBC Australia to adapt to a diverse and dynamic environment by focusing on employee empowerment, cultural sensitivity, and the strategic alignment of goals with human resource strategies. The conclusion highlights the importance of a talented workforce in achieving a competitive edge and recommends strategies for attracting, retaining, and motivating employees to maximize value and profitability.

Running head: CHALLENGES EFFECTING TALENT MANAGEMENT
Human Resources Talent Management Plan of HSBC Australia

CHALLENGES EFFECTING TALENT MANAGEMENT 1
Table of Contents
Introduction...........................................................................................................................................2
Economic, Technological and cultural factors effecting Talent Management.......................................2
Economy governed by Knowledge....................................................................................................2
Globalization.....................................................................................................................................3
Demographic Challenges effecting the talent management...............................................................3
Effect of the digital technology on managing the talent.....................................................................4
Strategic plan to develop cultural and diversity intelligence..............................................................5
Legislative framework for Equal opportunity....................................................................................5
Contemporary management approach to attain effectiveness in the organization..............................6
Benefits and consequences of taking corrective measures for efficient talent management..................7
Conclusion.............................................................................................................................................8
References.............................................................................................................................................9

CHALLENGES EFFECTING TALENT MANAGEMENT 2
Introduction
Hong Kong and Shanghai bank in Australia, has some key features being in a banking
industry. The main feature is development and practicing a strategy which is consistent and
not affected critically by the dynamic demands of the customers, practices and conventions.
We as a consultant company has to analyse the challenges HSBC Australia is facing with
respect to the development of their global talent management plan which is effected by a
number of organisational cultural consequences (Culture plus Consulting, 2016). This will
help the company to deal with it in practicality and create its employee resources in a way
which fosters fulfilling and rewarding work environment. Being a financial industry where
wealth management is the priority of the company, the main emphasis is upon skillset, talent
and hard work. In order to manage the culture in the right direction, there are various drivers
which cause a cultural shift in the company. It is the effective management of the driving
factors which help in proper talent management. In this essay, the focus is upon deciding the
measures to promote change management in the company in order to cope up with the effects
of factors like diversity, by imparting awareness of multiculturalism (Mitchell, 2014). It is
empowerment of employees, development of talent with the help of teamwork and embracing
cultural change which inculcates the organisational development.
Economic, Technological and cultural factors effecting Talent Management
Economy governed by Knowledge
A global business model in the banking sector can only be consistent when the team of
employees working in the organization is strong and adaptable to the cultural change. The

CHALLENGES EFFECTING TALENT MANAGEMENT 3
practices and regulations in the company depend upon the customer demand to a huge extent.
Therefore, if the staff is adaptable to the cultural shift which happens with new languages,
and entirely a modern way of carrying out work activities then technical knowledge is not the
only factor enough in placing the right candidate at the right position. It is equally important
for the company in the country like Australia especially at senior positions to be open as the
economy here is an international economy (Bedford, 2013). Apart from the expertise and a
good combination of skill set in the employees of bank, banking is more driven by customer
relationship. Managing talent in HSBC Australia entails factors like acquisition of customers
and attracting new customers which increases the market share which is identified by both
knowledge and cultural centric approach in the human resources (Parker, 2015).
Globalization
There have been many activities introduced in the Human resource and talent management
practices in various companies in Australia resulting from the business environmental
changes. Being a wealth management sector HSBC has encountered elevation in
competitiveness in global market due to a number of changes in technology, finance and
information. It is required to manage the Human resource and their talent in a manner they
can cope up with the resistance with respect to accommodating themselves to diversity. The
change in systems, processes in order to become culturally responsive both within the
organization and outside with the society is a key challenge (McDonough, 2011).
Demographic Challenges effecting the talent management
The employees of the company are facing diversity in the workplace with reference to
dimensions resulting from reduction in barriers between geographical boundaries across
various countries. These dimensions are marital status, background of education, race,
gender, physical capabilities. It is thus, the responsibility of the human resources department

CHALLENGES EFFECTING TALENT MANAGEMENT 4
of the company to accommodate the sensitivities amongst the individuals and reconcile it
with the organizational culture (McDonough, 2011). Improvement in the Employee morale,
placing the suitable candidate for the appropriate position and retention of the talented
employees are few corrective strategies for efficient talent management.
Effect of the digital technology on managing the talent
In the modern era of technology and digitization, there have been continuous changes in
processes and the management which has impacted the management of individual talent. All
the activities like integration of talent through various sources have been digitized. The
solutions to all processes have become high tech and management of talent has advanced.
Employee to employee communication and engagement has been digitized and collaboration
between organization and employee has been digitized too.
Banking industry requires personnel which possess unique skills in them and the roles in this
sector are not easy to be filled. Acquiring talent has become automated and sites like twitter
and LinkedIn are being used to find the right talent. There are tools which make a good
judgment and identify whether the candidate will rightly fit in a particular role (Hunt,
2014).There are new applications which help the new hired employees to interact with their
mentors and share their experiences to learn about the working and procedures of the
company.
The major challenge of adapting to this change is the rising expectations of employees in
terms of learning. There is a high expectation that they will be well equipped and enabled
with variety of technologies which make them addicted and they become habitual to these
tools. Flexibility and initiative must be the bank’s approach to overcome this challenge.
Learning on own building initiatives for learning among employees will help improve their
competency level.

CHALLENGES EFFECTING TALENT MANAGEMENT 5
Strategic plan to develop cultural and diversity intelligence
It is emotional intelligence of the organization which serves as an essential component for its
global success. HSBC Australia is serving millions of customers belonging to different
nationalities and groups. Its experience in terms of customer satisfaction is exceptional
because the bank recruits staff culturally adaptable (Human Resources Director, 2008).The
measures to manage the talent to cope with change management due to diversity and
multiculturalism are:
Legislative framework for Equal opportunity
It is a pride for Australia to be a country with diverse cultures. Financial institutions
especially HSBC, to create its presence needs to renovate its persistence strategies by
capturing that talent which encourages empowerment against discrimination. Australia’s
council of diversity has developed and equality index which provides the legislative measures
for LGBTI people to promote antidiscrimination (Soutphommasane, 2015). Conducting
campaigns for tolerance and inclusion which demonstrates the support to discrimination of
Framing strategy which incorporates diversity in
workforce and the market.
Retention, development and hiring workforce who
are culturally intelligent.
Conducting trainings and programs for spreading
awareness about diversity and multiculturalism.

CHALLENGES EFFECTING TALENT MANAGEMENT 6
race, any kind of physical disability or sexual and gender orientation is the best possible way
to respond and represent encouragement. There must be programs for demonstrating empathy
in aspects related to LGBTI employees. Corporate social responsibility and inclusion
programs must be designed for imparting help and training to build wellbeing and good
health to support anti-discrimination (Pride in Diversity, 2015).
Contemporary management approach to attain effectiveness in the organization
Customer satisfaction and employee satisfaction in talent management is achieved by the
organization by deep analysis of its external and internal environment. HSBC Australia being
a bank with diversity and multicultural environment needs to systemize the management in a
system which is socio technical in nature. This means attaining a proper combination of
workers who are appropriate amalgamations of training, knowledge and behaviour patterns.
This influences the organizational behaviour to a large extent creating an impact on talent
management of the organization. On the other hand, when it is a question of competitiveness
in the external environment the variables like legal, social, political and technological
influence the working of a company. All the factors which are external to the organization
must be carefully considered in order to compete in the global market (Jenner, 2014).

CHALLENGES EFFECTING TALENT MANAGEMENT 7
Benefits and consequences of taking corrective measures for efficient talent
management
 Effective attainment of product and market knowledge which further develops
decision making.
 It brings innovation and creativity by gauging the needs of multicultural and diverse
needs of market (Mitchell, 2014).
 It builds emotional recognition ability which leads to effective negotiations and
customer satisfaction.
 Effects organizational culture internally and promotes anti-discrimination which
retains the valued employees (Australia Post, 2016).
 It helps the company to get acquainted to new and modern perspectives of workplace
and market.

CHALLENGES EFFECTING TALENT MANAGEMENT 8
Conclusion
Human resource is considered a key differentiator which helps the company to
achieve a competitive edge over the other companies in the global market. The key challenge
of any company is to develop methods for hiring a high level of talent and retain such
employees. HSBC being a financial institution and an employer of choice needs to look for
the above ways in order to renovate its services and enrich them by customizing them.
Managing employee resources who value organization’s culture and developing approaches
motivational to employee mind-set are the strategies the bank must focus (Parrack, 2016).
Accommodating global thinking and incorporating responsiveness to the diverse culture in
the market to adapt to the requirements of the society will result in retaining talent. The bank
HSBC Australia needs to adapt to the best combination of talent and encouraging employees
to equip them towards dynamic realities. This will increase the level of value and profitability
in the international market. In order to maximise and enable profitable outcomes in the
business, the best option is to exercise proper alignment of goals and Human resource talent
management strategies. If there is a talented team of workforce dedicated to achieve the
goals, then the future leadership and managers will also possess same qualities.

CHALLENGES EFFECTING TALENT MANAGEMENT 9
References
Pride in Diversity 2015, Pride Inclusion Programs, Pride in Diversity, viewed 5 September
2017, < http://www.prideinclusionprograms.com.au/>.
Australia Post 2016, Diversity and Inclusion, Australia Post, viewed 5 September 2017, <
https://auspost.com.au/content/dam/auspost_corp/media/documents/diversity-and-inclusion-
annual-report-2016.pdf >.
Bedford, T. 2013, People skills matter more than technical skills, says HSBC Australia
commercial banking head, e financial careers, viewed 5 September 2017, <
http://news.efinancialcareers.com/au-en/130685/people-skills-matter-more-than-
technical-skills-says-hsbc-australia-commercial-banking-head >.
Culture Plus Consulting 2016, Diversity Management and Cultural Intelligence: Powerful
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https://cultureplusconsulting.com/2015/06/07/diversity-management-cultural-
intelligence/ >.
Human Resources Director 2008, Diversity at HSBC, Human Resources Director, viewed 5
September 2017, < http://www.hcamag.com/hr-resources/diversity/diversity-at-hsbc-
114612.aspx>
Hunt, C. 2014, Transforming Talent Management: The Impact of Social and Digital Tech,
Social Media Today, viewed 5 September 2017, <
http://www.socialmediatoday.com/content/transforming-talent-management-impact-
social-and-digital-tech >.

CHALLENGES EFFECTING TALENT MANAGEMENT 10
Jenner, M. 2014, Contemporary Approaches to Management & Environments, The Lemon
Center, viewed 5 September 2017,< http://lemoncenter.com/contemporary-
approaches-management-environments-organization >.
McDonough, M. 2011, Facing Modern HR Challenges Head-On, Bright hub, viewed 5
September 2017, <
http://www.brighthub.com/office/human-resources/articles/83254.aspx>.
Mitchell, R. 2014, Cultural intelligence: Everybody needs it, Harvard Gazette, viewed 5
September 2017, < https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2014/11/cultural-
intelligence-everybody-needs-it/>.
Parker, M. 2015, Ignorance in HSBC top brass shows if banks are too big to fail, they’re too
big to manage, The Conversation, viewed 5 September 2017, <
https://theconversation.com/ignorance-in-hsbc-top-brass-shows-if-banks-are-too-big-
to-fail-theyre-too-big-to-manage-38794>.
Parrack, L. 2016, Trends in the banking and finance industries: HR be ready, be quick, be
thorough, Cubiks, viewed 5 September 2017, <
http://www.cubiks.com/insights/trends-banking-and-finance-industries-hr-be-ready-
be-quick-be-thorough >.
Soutphommasane, T. 2015, Cultural diversity in the workplace, Australian Human Rights
Commission, viewed 5 September 2017,
<https://www.humanrights.gov.au/news/speeches/cultural-diversity-workplace-0>.

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