Talent Centric
inclusion. The discussions in this area remind
me of those around gender balance which
started in earnest circa 10 years ago. Initially,
people paid lip service to gender balance as part
of the corporate social responsibility agenda,
but this changed as soon as research started
to emerge, proving how this new ‘diversity
of thought’ in the workforce was positively
impacting the bottom line.
The same impact will unequivocally be
true of social mobility: we simply will not
be able to find all of the talent we need from
the traditional red brick or state universities.
We’re going to have to source talent from other
talent pools, and focus on potential, not solely
on background and education, because it’s
the only way we will fill the roles of the future.
The Social Mobility and Child Poverty
Commission launched its Time for Change
report in June 2017, concluding that it will
take decades before the divisions in education
and employment narrow. It found:
• it will take 120 years before disadvantaged
teenagers are as likely as their better off
counterparts to get equivalent qualifications
• graduate employment for disadvantaged
students has “barely improved”, though
widening access to university is seen as a
success for social mobility policies.
Nowadays, more sophisticated assessment
processes enable us to better identify and
measure potential both in the hiring process
and throughout one’s career.
Assessment: a vital tool,
not a procedure
Can you imagine a world today without
Amazon? CEO, Founder and Chairman, Jeff
Bezos’ first role was behind the counter of a
McDonald’s. Had he been assessed and given
opportunities based solely on his resume or
humble beginnings, rather than his immense
potential, would our retail-buying preferences
have been moulded as acutely as they are
today? I don’t believe so.
Research conducted shows that recruiters
spend an average of 6.25 seconds reviewing
a resume (Forbes.com, 2015) in order to
create a shortlist of candidates based on the
perceived ‘hard skills’ and abilities required
for a particular role. To truly be competitive,
this is no longer a viable hiring tactic. Simply
reviewing resumes will not accurately reflect
ENHANCING
BALANCE
INCLUDES:
• assessing the
potential and
innate ability of
candidates rather
than focusing on
qualifications
• ensuring your
culture is properly
represented as part
of your branding
• modelling diversity,
flexibility and
balance from the
top down
• highlighting
opportunities for
flexibility on job
descriptions
• sponsorship
versus mentorship:
leaders or
managers should
know how to
recognise potential
and actively
sponsor people
into roles.
“Growing
diversity
culminates
in diversity
of thought”
a candidate’s potential, their suitability for
your company culture, or whether they
possess the core attributes to thrive in your
organisation – vital for reduced attrition rates
and long-term success.
As people managers and leaders, we must
learn how to recognise and understand our
candidates’– and colleagues’ – ability to learn
and integrate new experiences into their day-to-
day work. Also key is their aptitude for forming
new behaviours and ways of thinking, their
resilience, adaptability, and, most importantly,
emotional intelligence. Today, we are enabled by
reams of technology which accurately measure
these abilities. Once considered nice-to-have
‘soft skills’, they are undoubtedly imperative
to achieving ‘diversity of thought’, thus
creating a sustainable competitive advantage,
and effectively harnessing top ‘gig’ talent.
Impact of the financial crisis
Looking specifically at Retail Banking and
Insurance, because of the 2008 financial
crisis, organisations in this sector have gone
through a massive cultural reframing. The
banks were broken down and voices said: “If
we’re going to rebuild, we must do so with the
goal of cultivating a less aggressive, high-risk
environment. To do this we need to tap into
a range of talent sources to ensure ‘diversity
of thought’.”
Banking may never have begun to change
its culture had it not been for the need to
demonstrate externally that it recognised
and was actively taking steps to change the
environment in which it operated. A shift may
have eventually been driven by the millennial
generation, looking for meaning in work
and green credentials as well as salary, but I
question whether banks would have formalised
diversity-related policies without the crisis.
What immediate need would there have been?
Select retail banks and insurance
organisations have been very vocal about
their intentions to create diverse, inclusive
workforces – for applicants and workers from
all walks of life – driving this necessary step
change. And even though not all banks have
been public about their aspirations, I see many
attempting to drive diversity internally first,
from an organisational culture perspective,
which is a positive move.
Ultimately, they have recognised that
growing diversity culminates in ‘diversity of
thought’ – a vital tool for success in the future
of work.
Issue 2 - 2017
37