Out-of-the-box thinking from Talent & Potential...

This is the second of our articles on what you need to do to create a culture where people drive their own development and career. In the last article, we looked at what to stop doing. In this article we ask – “What 6 actions can you take to reinforce a self-driven culture?”

Some years ago, I asked a client what she saw as T&P’s most important contribution, expecting her to comment on the research that underpinned our work, or the quality of our tools. She surprised me by saying that the thing she prized about T&P was that we changed people by giving them a self-driven attitude. I also remember one person at the start of a talent programme talking about why he’d applied, and saying “I looked at the change in people who are coming off this programme, and thought “I don’t know what they are doing on Aspire! – but I want some of it!” This is the first of 2 articles looking at the mechanics of how we do it. So – how do you shift attitudes and create a culture where people drive their own success?

Most organisations subscribe to the idea that 70% of learning should be by undertaking stretching work carried out on-the-job, 20% should be learning from people, and 10% via courses and reading. Are you equipping your managers to manage the 70%? The 70-20-10 model can’t be successful without this essential ingredient.

Assessment centres are employed with one precise objective: to be more objective and reliable in assessing talent. Yet many ACs we’ve seen have 2 inherent biases in their design that are rarely discussed. The principle of AC design should be simple. Let’s take an AC designed to pick entry onto a graduate or a high potential scheme.

Today’s article is a short one, just a challenge to accepted thinking about ‘networking’. It sometimes seems that you can’t move without bumping into the notion of networking, and how important this is in getting ahead. Mention ‘networking’ and a lot of people will inwardly groan. Do you know people who feel that way? They don’t challenge the need to network, but they don’t like the idea of actually going out and doing it! Perhaps they should challenge the need to network