We’ve all seen the headlines lately about the United States being at full employment. On the surface, full employment might sound like a good thing, right? Everybody has a job. Well, not so fast. Full employment can create a couple talent management challenges, including: 

• Over inflated compensation and benefits. A competitive job market is a good thing. Top talent should be able to get what they deserve for their skills and experience. However, too much competition can cause employers to throw money at their talent problems. It might sound very attractive to candidates and employees to have money thrown at them, because no one likes being underpaid. But employees also don’t want to be overpaid.  

• Less turnover. High turnover isn’t good for business. But zero turnover isn’t either. A little bit of turnover can bring in fresh perspectives, skills, or strengths. If the job market gets too tough, organizations might be reluctant to discipline or terminate employees for fear that they won’t be able to find a replacement for months. It’s that old philosophy of better to work with the devil you know than someone new. 

That’s why it’s more important than ever that the recruiting and training functions work together to fill the talent pipeline. Recruiters must be able to tell the organization what roles are better to develop in-house (versus recruit from the outside). And learning professionals must do the same. Let the organization know what jobs would be better to hire from the outside instead of developing from within. 

Managers Play a Role in Talent Management Success 

In addition to the training and recruiting partnership, there’s a third player that’s necessary—management. Managers have a significant role when it comes to talent management. It’s to find and train their replacement. 

When managers are focused on succession planning, they select the best talent, train for success, coach for high performance, and retain employees. They can take a vacation or attend a conference with confidence, knowing that the department isn’t going to fall apart. Managers who are focused on developing talent can participate in that super-secret special project that will get the attention of senior management. They can do cool stuff that will enhance their skills and knowledge. 

Managers who focus on finding and training their replacement aren’t dispensable. In fact, they’re promotable. And, organizations that want managers who will hire, train, and retain the best talent need to set those managers up for success. 

Unfortunately, some organizations are so focused on recruiting and learning that they forget to focus on making managers a part of the talent management team. They hire or promote the most technically competent person into management. The new manager gets training on the job, which isn’t bad. On-the-job training can be very valuable. But too often, on-the-job training happens after the new manager makes a mistake—a mistake that could have been avoided if the new manager had received proper training in the first place. 

One way to give new managers the tools they need for success is with onboarding. Think about it—companies currently provide onboarding to new hire employees. Why not onboard new managers? 

Now, onboarding managers isn’t the same as management or leadership development. Those programs offer skills that employees can use immediately, such as communication, decision-making, and problem-solving skills. A manager onboarding program includes skills that managers need the minute they become a manager, such as workforce management and employment law. There’s a place for all of these programs within the organization. 

Managers are an important part of talent management success. Organizations need to give them the tools to meet their goals, starting with day one onboarding, because they need to help the recruiting and learning functions with talent management. 

Onboarding Is the Connection Between Recruiting and Learning 

According to Recruiting.com, as many as one in four new hires quit their job in the first six months. We know turnover is costly. Think of the essential functions of talent management like a three-legged stool with recruiting, learning, and management as the three legs for building employee success. 

Today’s recruiting and learning professionals not only need to work together when it comes to filling the talent pipeline, they need to make sure that managers are given the tools they need to become part of the talent management team. It takes all three functions—recruiting, training, and management—to have talent management success.