THE IMPACT OF COMPETITVE ADVANTAGE, TALENT MANAGEMENT AND EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT ON ORGANIZATIONAL PRODUCTIVITY
Abstract
Organizations and critical life positions and roles requires fulfilment by enormous potential talents that are highly skilled and reliable, and as such requires a continuous development and improvement with regards to nurturing through creativity and unlimited potential ideas for the future generations. The today’s economy is capable and highly knowledgeable, shifting the focus to possessing the right talents and talents pools and thus the human aspect of the organizations is a priority (Michaels Handfield-Jones and Axelrod). Talent management (TM) has been criticized for not having an objectivity full meaning by Lewis and Heckman (2006). Therefore the challenge is to provide a universally acceptable meaning to Talent management.
The purpose of this study is to gain a complete knowledge on TM, its impacts on organizational productivity, its importance and how a talented strategy influences Employee Engagement and what are the Organizational benefits of a better talent management of High Educational institutions in Malaysia specifically Universities (Limkokwing University). This research is quantitative research study to fine out the meaning and the relationship between talent management strategies and employee engagement resulting to productivity. The study investigates whether there is a common idea that human resources are the Organization’s main power of Competitive Advantage; which is an important aspect that is now becoming increasingly and highly short in resource.
It has been seen that the fastest growing second world countries so to say, have a great desire for the bringing up of specialisation and talent management in the local business. The science has an outburst of specialisation that needs utmost care and concise recruitment strategies. Such activities will bring about the specific results demanded by the present and future economic benefits.
Keywords
1. TM: Talent management
2. EE: Employee engagement
3. HEI: Higher Educational Institutions
4.
Chapter 1: INTRODUCTION
1. Introduction
This chapter introduces us to the concept of talent management, employee engagement, and Competitive advantage to organizational productiveness.
Talent management and employee engagement (EE) concept had been a partial focus of studies for about a decade now (Lewis & Heckman, 2006; Collings, Scullion & Caligiuri, 2010, Saks & Gruman, 2014). Academic practitioners and researchers have had many and high focused studies on this area but it is mainly on investigating their impacts on organizational performance and competitive advantage.
Hence, the present study examines and explores talent management and employee engagement by researching the relationship between the two concepts and investigating the impact of talent management practices on employee engagement and how it influences organizational performance. The reason for conducting this research is that most of the research in relation to this subject had studied the relationship between employee engagement and overall organizational performance. However, most of the research in relation to this topic is more focused on the context of western countries and little research explores Talent management and employee engagement in the Asian countries and African countries. Therefore, this has triggered the need for further studies in the Malaysian Higher institution (Universities) by providing empirical evidence in the hopes of providing a positive impact of talent management and employee engagement on organizational productivity.
Talent management (TM) is a term that can be defined as a set of integrated human resource processes modelled to attract, develop, motivate, engage and retain productively engaged employees and workers. This is designed to maximize the potential of individual employees and is also associated with the organization’s long-term goals. The term Talent management was inspired by Mckinsey & Company in the year 1997 and in the following year 1998 it was put into writing by Elizabeth G. Chambers. Nevertheless, the idea had existed since the 1970s but without much of a practical meaning.
Strategic talent management definition is redefined as activities and processes that involve the systematic identification of positions that differentially contribute to an organization’s sustainable competitive advantage, the development of a diverse talent pool to fill these roles, and the development of a differentiated human resource architecture to facilitate filling the roles and continued commitment to the organization and to the well-being of societies, while taking into account the local and national contexts, (Al Ariss, Cascio & Paauwe 2014, 177).
Talent further more can be define as a group of people or workers who have unique ability or abilities for a certain task.
Management in organizational terms means to coordinate the efforts of workers or people in accomplishing goals and objectives with the efficient and effective use of available resources. Human capital is a Human Resource management concept when looking at it from talent and can be regarded as the stock of capabilities, knowledge, social or personal attributes that is enclosed in the ability to perform a task so as to have a final outcome of economic value (Nijs et al, 2014).
Talent management in the past was an area where firms were list proficient and while practitioner’s interest is fast developing and gaining more recognition, academic research are developing at a very slower rate. Therefore, our basis is to provide conceptual and empirical grounds to boast the interest and understand of practitioners and researchers.
In three key stream of thinking by Lewis and Heckman, 2006, they identify that the label talent management is merely replacing human resource management.
A research on Talent management and employee engagement highlighted that the need for talent management is so important to an organization or institution that it cannot be left in the function of human resource alone (Economist intelligent unit, 2006).
1.2 PROBLEM STATEMENT
The general perception of employment centred on qualification is fast becoming a concept of the past. The world is evolving into an organism of specialist and specifics. There is need for specialisation in any field and therefore and exceptional outcome is expected. The incumbent is thus expected to deliver beyond reasonable doubt. Talent management is a niche in the market that demands a certain level of analysis. The selection and recruitment of human resources is a field worth considering.
The identification of talent is the name given to the concept of talent management. The choice of such talents necessary to the organisation needs careful scanning. The positioning of such talents from people is also a sore thumb. Therefore the problem facing organisations is talent acquisition, positioning and watching the organisation progress in the light of such endeavours. Organisations perish due to positioning of wrong skills for particular jobs and therefore the problem faced by organisations is the monitoring of productivity in line with the talents management concepts.
In Accordance to Knapp, Kelly Reid, Ginder and National Centre of education (2009), talents are employed for the purpose of performing a range of organizational tasks to ensure that the organization functions effectively and efficiently. Talent/employee is regarded by Smerek and Perterson (2007) as the key component in today's higher education institutions, because their responsibility is to take care of the daily operations of the university’s activities. In addition, Rothmann and Essenko (2007) further explain that employees plays a major role in the creation and improvement of knowledge and modernization in HEI.
Rothmann and Essenko, 2007 quoted that it will be impossible to attain all organization goals and objectives, for the intellectual and personal development without the assistance of its employee. All learning institutions need the cooperation and interpersonal relations of talent managers and employees who work closely with the students and facilitators.
However, (Pitman, 2000) stresses out that administrative staff in HEI have been overlooked with regard to the issues that affect workers engagement. This means that TM and EE failed to come up with effective strategies that result in low quality Talent management efforts and engagement plans to support it employees. Aspects that may negatively affect Talent management quality such as recognizing, identifying, attracting, developing and motivating the talent. In most cases, talent are denied opportunities for development, they are denied a chance to engage positively and enhance their careers, and in addition flexibility. The need for them to grow within their jobs is often under looked, and promotion chances are regarded as chance, hence growth is likely stagnant.
The research report done by the IBM Institute for Business Value (2008), on integrated talent management, found that educational institutions fall short in managing talent. They are extensively less likely to effectively implement talent management practices, as a result, they face the most challenges, particularly in motivating and developing their workforce and this drive the talented employee to other promising sectors. In addition, Lynch (2007) identified few Higher Education Institutions which have established formal programs to support the existing talent of their staff. The author found that most organizations that are excelling in delivering training and development to external organizations and to their students usually fail to assist their employees and internal personnel as a whole, with the development of their skills or the advancement of their careers. This problem impacts negatively on HEI. It thus contributes largely to an employee's low morale, job dissatisfaction, disengagement, and as a result leads to low productivity.
Lynch (2007) further advices that for high educational institution to be viewed as part of the solution rather than a major cause of poor talent management and engagement efforts, the need to re-visits and examine institutional culture, processes and policies, to align them with the fact that access to knowledge and talent is the key to a future society that possess intelligence and innovation. McKinsey and Company (2001) stated that regardless of the size, the type of the industry or the product offer, many institution have to recognize the importance of talent, and the mechanisms that will make their organization more attractive to talented workforce.
1.3 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
Talent management is in fact a mainframe of an institution (organization) and therefore an important strategy to a successful business venture or for organizations to gain competitive advantage as to reason being it comprehends a variety of backgrounds, either in behaviours, action, language, different ways of approach a problem and different methods of providing solutions, which therefore is the perfect study practice. Talented group of people or employees gain more meaning and more purpose to do their best when their talents are well management and given the care that is needed thereby increasing their performance with the intension of maintaining the talents and further more retaining the talents (Effective talent management which is limited).
1.4 RESEARCH SCOPE
The purpose of this research is to provide thorough information/knowledge on the subject of talent management that is the attraction and retention of talents, and the examination of the situations arising from a well-managed talent and opposed to that which is not well managed. It aims to contribute to an increasing awareness and development of talent management within higher academic institutions in Malaysia. In order to accomplish this objective there will be the highly involvement of groups of subject or the institutions in general. My University best be the most international Academic University in creativity will be part of this research among a few other institutions. This is aim at providing and improving the valuable inputs to employers/talents. And as such information will be gathered from seminars, interviews, literature studies and statistics from employers, employees and post graduate students and this will be the foundation from which adequate questions with reflective answers on talent management. The core objective is to investigate the relationship between Talent development and employee engagement.
1.6 RESEARCH OBJECTIVES
The following objectives were established in order to address the above questions
1. To establish the impact of talent management of organisational performance.
2. To establish the impact of employee engagement and the relationship with organisational productivity
3. To establish the relationship between competitive advantage and organisational performance
1.5 RESEARCH QUESTION
1. How is talent management becoming a field that is more focused on by organizations?
2. How does talent management affect organisational productivity?
3. What is the competitive advantage of having sound talent management? And how does employee engagement influence the productivity of organisations?
1.7 RESEARCH HYPOTHESES
The following hypotheses were established in order to map the path of the discussion.
Ho: There is no significant relationship between Talent management and organisational productivity
H1: There is a significant relationship between talent management and organisational productivity
H2: There is a significant relationship between employee engagement and organisational productivity
H3: There is a significant relationship between competitive advantage and organisational productivity
1.8 CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
The framework that relates the variables is as follows;
Figure 1.1 RESEARCH DESIGN FRAMEWORK
1.9 CONCLUSION
The above topic is a measure of the relationships that will be deliberated upon on the concept of talent management. This means that the different relationships between talent management and employee engagement have a varied relationship with organisational productivity. Not only is the basis on manufacturing organisations but it is a concept worth pursuing in both product and service industries such as Higher Education Institutions (HEI). The following chapter elaborates on the concepts in greater detail. Thus the chapter following will review the literature related to this concept.