Time to get over the hang-ups surrounding failure. A brief history of talent development.

Many leaders today almost switch off when the issue of talent development is raised as they know it is an issue but they struggle to find the answer. Failures in talent management have been an ongoing source of pain for executives in modern organisations for the last twenty years.

The discussion has been almost dysfunctional as L&D Directors have been talking of their successes whilst many CEOs have felt deeply frustrated at the lack of new talent breaking through. Who has been right?

As always, both have their arguments but there is little doubting that there has been less fresh talent break through compared to past days. The good news is that many can see the exciting potential in the new talent emerging – so the test is for L&D, HR and CEOs to free that talent up.

The answer is not as simple as possessing a strong plan for human capital or a good learning process. It is not as simple as having a strong process as process itself can and will fail as well as disengage and be inaccurate.

What is required is a new approach which does take into account the uncertainty which all face today. The funny thing is little of this discussion is new. Internal development was stronger and more the norm in the 1950s and 60s than it is today. More was invested and given this, many experts point to this leading to economic successes as a result thereof.

The trend continued in the 1970s and 80s but where the problem really came was in the early 2000's when three things happened:
• Open borders and an influx of new talent from Europe
• The lifespans of CEOs reduced so there was less interest to focus on the development of either internal talent or values. This was made worse after the 2008 crash.
• The advancement of technology which led to more process, more bureaucracy and more demands placed on all executives to live without the support structures they once possessed in the 50s, 60s and 70s. Greater profits were heralded as executives worked harder and longer, and structures were reduced by an average 25%.

It is like any asset. If there has been twenty years of underinvestment, it is natural that this will lead to erosion and problems.

Now is the time to perhaps refocus on what can be done? Companies are not suddenly going to invest great sums back into this area but all can work harder at what is needed and there are new structures and processes emerging all the time to support younger talent.

It used to be an old saying that the corporate players needed the young entrepreneur to push it through innovation and vice versa. The same is true with talent. It is easy for boards to become stale. All need to be pushed and challenged by the new. Business should want to free up its talent so that all are energised and challenged.

Will there be failures? Without question but maybe many need to get over their hang-ups on failure. Failure is important in any development process. The fear of failure which so many carry is hardly a sign of a confident environment but more of one which is stressed.
In conversation last week, a senior chairman noted that he had never failed in his career. His only failure was that he had tried to enter the world of politics but it was the fault of the party. His stance was that failure was a bad thing and he was proud of his clean record. However, the odds are that he had failed many times. The concern was whether he ever recognised his failures and if not, could he really be as effective as he believed?

Perhaps talent has struggled over the last twenty years as so many have placed other factors first. Now it must be time for a broader perspective.