How new generation companies give value to talent

Talented candidates must be persuaded and looked after as if they were clients. It is also in the company’s interest to invest in the future development of the talent who has been hired and both parties can benefit from it. It is necessary to find a good strategy in order to choose the candidates and then focus on the following steps: introduction and addition to the company and retention, in particular once the economy becomes more stable and looking for new job opportunities will be easier. Following an appropriate brand strategy and relying on the working environment, the company must make itself attractive for future employees.

Once the candidates have been recruited, Human Resources must supervise them - using all Information Age tools at their disposal - and engage them with the company’s objectives. Even today some companies still have short-sighted policies which at first attract the most valid candidates but then end up being unable to retain them due to the lack of a mutual bond of trust/because they have been unable to create a mutual bond of trust. The first fundamental step is to define a people strategy. The improvement of the economic situation will be a crucial factor in the mobility of candidates. As a consequence, employers must be committed to retaining (retention strategy) their employees. If the company focuses on the workers, considering them the cornerstone of the company’s organisation, it will be more difficult for the employees to find a good reason to leave.

Millenials, ranging in age from 23 to 38, and young people belonging to the Z generation, who are even younger and grew up with internet and social media, are used to challenging themselves with temporary instead of looking for stable employment. To them, digital technology will be of great importance in every career path. Companies must promote the role they have available as the ideal place for the best talent. In order to do so, a precise strategy must be followed:

Nowadays, employees feel more and more a strong need to be able to work in a flexible manner. The time when people stayed from Monday to Friday, eight hours per day, in the same working space, has passed. Giving more flexibility means having more satisfied and, consequently, more productive employees.

Equipment must be efficient and state-of-the art. Often employees complain about obsolete and defective hardware and this not only slows the workflow down but also doesn’t encourage the employees to use them. Purchasing new equipment motivates employees to keep up-to-date.

Technology evolves and requires the workforce to be constantly updated. It is advisable to guarantee professional training inside the company using also innovative e-learning methods. This behaviour demonstrate to the employee the company’s interest in their own talent.

HR management needs a cultural change: Human resources must be engaged through continuous feedback and iniziative di formazione. Employees need to be motivated by an individual prospect of professional growth and, as mentioned above, the company needs to take care of their staff even on an emotional level, like customer care does with the clients. The strategy must put the person at the heart of the company and focus on five different areas:

1. Development of skills
2. Design of professional growth paths
3. Opportunities for smart working
4. The promotion of the company as a wellbeing-oriented working environment (employer branding)
5. Spreading transversal knowledge that people possess beyond the working field.

The Human Resources department will have to take into account the digital transformation, take advantage of innovations and adapt them to the reality of the Italian industry. Furthermore, they will have to manage the resources using a performance development system, a process that will involve both the employee and the supervisor and will use instruments aimed at fostering efficient communication and encouraging the establishment of new relationships. A close relationship between companies and the educational system is fundamental. Companies will have to offer scholarships to university students and professional training programs to newly hired employees including full-immersion practical experience and opportunities to develop their knowledge of corporate structures in order to enhance soft and technical skills.

Many companies have to struggle when it comes to retaining talent but certain targeted measures can reverse the trend of young employees leaving after a short period of time. An introspective analysis of the organisation and long-term oriented strategies represent the first step towards change.