Fighting the war for talent

Your organization is not the only one fighting the "war for talent".

An interesting article from the Canadian Press yesterday highlighted the difficulties the Canadian Forces are having in recruiting "a shrinking demographic of select young people between the ages of 18 and 29".

The Canadian Forces are aiming to attract 7,000 new people into regular units this year and another 8,000 in 2009. A smaller selection of highly technical positions is creating even more recruiting difficulties. 40 such positions needed to be filled in the last year, yet only 20 individuals were successfully recruited and suitably trained.

"The numbers are tiny but they are significant in their impact," top Gen. Rick Hillier told the media. "So we are working hard... to get out to technical colleges and get a greater profile there".

The overall attrition rate for the Canadian Forces is now 8% - "the envy of every single military force in the western world" according to Gen. Hillier - yet rising at an unprecedented rate. The organization has so far focused heavily on re-signing bonuses to counter this trend.

If you still weren't convinced that a "war for talent" is underway in Canada, then you have one more piece of evidence to add to the collection.

Read the full article here.

Remembering the Good 'Ol Days..

Don't let this happen to your organization...

Who's your new guru?

In the latest round of guru rankings by the Wall Street Journal, psychologists and CEOs are gaining ground in influencing corporate trends.

This year Gary Hamel tops the list. Two other journalist-writers share the Top 5 spots with him, including Thomas Friedman and Malcolm Gladwell. Former Microsoft CEO Bill Gates made the list and professor of education from Harvard - Howard Gardner - was also cited. Gardner is known for his work on the theory of "multiple intelligences".



Traditional gurus, such as Michael Porter and Tom Peters fared lower in the listing this year. Instead writers on topics such as "emotional intelligence", decision making and marketing championed the ranking.

The results were collected based on Google search hits, media mentions and academic citations. Gary Hamel rose to the top spot from #7 in the 2003 ranking. Hamel is known for his latest book "The Future of Management", reviewed in our November 2007 newsletter.

What does that mean for HR?

Today the most pressing themes include globalization, motivation and innovation. Traditional business gurus writing in "weighty tones" are in decline

It's an indication of how HR messages should be communicated to the organization. Make them easy to understand and make sure they are relevant to the global external context.