Whether or not they were fully employed during the pandemic, many employees are initiating job searches now that the pandemic has somewhat eased. Talent development or strategic employee development managers are often tasked with controlling the turnover of talent in their organizations.
Two significant surveys (one by CareerArc and another by the Conference Board) have indicated that “talent retention” is a considerable concern for business leaders after COVID-19. That is not surprising, considering that it takes four months to correct a hiring mistake and that a bad hire makes both morale and productivity plummet.
If you are a talent development or strategic employee development manager, therefore, your own talents are in high demand. Your resume must highlight your ability to:
- Understand what current and potential employees want. Many studies have indicated that employees are much more likely to leave to find a better manager than to find more pay. Opportunities for advancement are also important. You must be able to assess the reasons talented employees leave or stay with your company and accurately determine what makes the company attractive to new talent.
- Negotiate and communicate with leaders. You will be negotiating for more resources to develop and retain talent. You must be able to align your requests with the goals of the company. You must also have good communication skills and an aptitude for connecting with upper management as well as employees.
- Measure results. Hiring managers will expect you to show that your retention and talent development efforts have impacted employee retention, productivity, and morale. You must gather data and evaluate statistics.
- Think creatively and flexibly. Relying on “one size fits all” training programs may be fine right after the pandemic. Eventually, you must find out what approach to talent retention and development works best for your company culture—or you must work to change the culture. Either direction requires both creativity and flexibility in your thinking.
- Strategize and organize. One way to ensure that true talent sticks around is to make sure they have the resources, training, and information they need. Depending on the company’s size, you may be training and interacting with hundreds or even thousands of employees. You may present dozens of different programs and manage multiple resources. Strategizing and organizational skills are essential.
Does your current resume reflect the level of your accomplishments and skills in collaborating, negotiating, and communicating with employees, candidates, and company leaders; establishing metrics; solving problems and make decisions with a creative and flexible attitude; and organizing people and resources? As a talent development or strategic employee development manager, you already know the importance of a strong resume. Join forces with Robin’s Resumes® to help make sure your resume is a true reflection of your talent.