Every week, I review blogs that cover talent development to find the very best talent development posts. This week, you’ll find pointers to pieces about leadership as an occupation, employee screening, individual development plans, strengths-based talent management, and workforce analytics.
From HR Bartender: Is Leadership an Occupation
“Recently, I met someone who’s looking for a new opportunity (read: they’re unemployed). When I asked them what kind of work they were looking for, they said they wanted to be a leader. It took me a few moments to process the reply. I hadn’t really spent a lot of time considering it. Is being a leader an occupation?”
Wally’s Comment: There are at least two interesting questions embedded in this marvelous post by Sharlyn Lauby. First is either leadership or management an occupation? That leads into the second question: “Does industry experience matter?”
From TLNT: Five “Must Know†Trends in Employee Screening
“You all know the drill: you’ve got a great candidate, you make the offer and now you’ve got to make sure they pass the background check.”
Wally’s Comment: Lance Haun reviews some trends in employee screening. Most important from my point of view is the increase in the number of states with their own rules about using a credit check in the screening process.
From Great Leadership: Individual Development Plans (IDPs) Are Worthless….
“Yes, I’ll tell you, I’ve helped write some beautiful IDPs. I should start a portfolio; maybe publish one of those big coffee table books, or frame them and hang them in my office. Unfortunately, I’m afraid many of them are worthless pieces of paper. They are fairy tales, complete fabrications, and boldfaced lies.”
Wally’s Comment: If the plan doesn’t turn into action that turns into results, it’s just fond hope. Dan McCarthy suggests four things you can do to get the most (or at least something) out of your individual development plans.
From DDI: Are We Ignoring Our Strengths?
“I conducted my semi-annual “in-the-air” survey with a dozen people on the way over from the U.S. Thirteen out of the fifteen people I bothered on the flight felt the workplace was tougher and far crueler than two years ago. How bad? I asked them to choose between the worse of two evils: flying or going to work Monday mornings. Sixty percent hated work more than flying!”
Wally’s Comment: The author of this post is Rich Wellins, senior vice president at DDI. He offers five questions to get you started if you’re considering what he calls “strengths-based talent management.”
My last recommendation for this week is from John Sumser at HR Examiner: “In The Know v1.35 Workforce Analytics.” John shares six links to resources that will help you get your head around “workforce analytics.” You may also want to read a little about the “Integrated Talent Management Study” that IBM and the Human Capital Institute released two years ago.
