Lori Harris is a Managing Partner at Harris Whitesell Consulting.
getty
Sophocles once said, "Success, remember, is the reward of toil."
Every project is designed with the intention to achieve the project goals and targets and avoid and effectively foresee, predict and mitigate risks. To get there, a project must have a strong foundation of diversity, trust, commitment, inclusion, productive dialogue and conflict, accountability, cohesion and resiliency among its team.
In a recent global Project Management Institute (PMI) study, talent management functions ranked, on average, 58% or lower in priority to an organization. Projects on average spend 20% of the project budget on talent management, with the primary focus on financial value and social impact. What is interesting about the current data is that it proves that talent management is still not at the top of the priority list for projects, and because it is not, projects will continue to have culture, talent optimization, plan execution and collective result issues that negatively impact the focus on financial value and social impact.
In today's project economy, to experience effective levels of engagement and performance and achieve overall efficacy, productivity, sustainable results and true success, a project must brand, assess, select, align, hire, onboard, train, assign, develop, retain and manage a strong and fluid talent management strategy that focuses on workforce staffing, workforce development, workforce planning and organizational effectiveness.
Here are nine tips to keep top of mind when prioritizing your talent management strategy.
1. The company's performance and project success are dependent on every individual appointed, assigned, partnered and hired to the project. Put the right people front and center.
2. Ensure the project culture reflects people-centric values.
3. The purpose of talent management is to maximize excellence and business results throughout the project culture and lifecycle.
4. Communication intelligence is key to project success. Assess and develop it.
5. To build your talent management strategy, start with what your talent needs are, not what talent you have.
6. Be proactive with cross-training and development to ensure sustained execution and impact.
7. Talent management should align and integrate individuals to the project philosophies (mission, vision, values, strategy and objectives).
8. Develop and optimize project talent to influence and motivate the project team and improve the member, stakeholder and customer experience.
9. Talent management should be assessed and aligned to project outcomes and frequently measured to ensure member, team, project and organizational growth, value and opportunities.
Talent management, when prioritized from the project idea phase and sustained through project closure, is a noble strategy that affords proven human resource concepts, methods, systems, processes and outcomes that streamline and strengthen trust, credibility, respect, pride, collaboration and camaraderie among the team, leadership, stakeholders and customers—the true rhodium of the project and its culture.
A talent management strategy provides project leaders, team members, stakeholders and customers clarity, commitment, communication, confidence, consistency, connection and enjoyment throughout the project lifecycle. It is through talent that the work gets done, and it is therefore the realization and achievement of alignment, inclusion, engagement, performance, resiliency, satisfaction and key project results. Now that is project success at its best!
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