Regular readers will notice that I draw upon the Wall Street Journal to prompt ideas for many of my posts.  You’ll also notice that I have a hard time keeping up with this great publication, and it took being housebound with almost a foot of new snow today for me to wade through my stack of back issues.  While wading, an article from the January 15, 2008 issue entitled, "Demand Rises for Talent-Management Software" caught my eye and prompted a few thoughts and questions. 

It’s fairly well established in my mind through our firm’s research and from working for large and small firms as an employee and as a consultant, that most organizations and most leaders stink at talent development.  I’ve cited a number of studies and surveys in my various posts that report findings that are in violent agreement with this conclusion.  However, now that there is software to help us manage talent, are our problems over? 

Is the new software the silver bullet that leaders everywhere have been looking for
that will force/cajole/remind them to focus on talent development?
Will this new software finally raise talent development to the level of
strategic priority?   I will offer a few thoughts and would love some
input from anyone with a strong opinion one-way or the other.

I’ve always been leery of throwing software at a problem and expecting the problem to be solved.  Introducing software into an environment where the human/paper process is flawed in the first place, often just transfers the problem to a new medium.  (Full disclosure: some of my best friends run software companies and I am an industry alum.) 

I frankly don’t expect a firm that does a poor job on the basics such as goal and objective setting, performance reviews and succession planning to suddenly improve because of the presence of new software.  However, I can also see some benefits of using the automation of these tasks as a tool to improve an organization’s performance for talent development.

  • Just the process of identifying the needed talent management processes as part of assessing the need for software, will call attention to the deficiencies and create a common understanding of where things need to improve.  This is good.
  • There are a number of administrative components of talent management and development that can be effectively simplified and routinized through automation.  This is also good.
  • The potential for information sharing regarding reviews, talent assessment and succession planning is high with an automated approach.  Another plus for the software initiative.

On the downside, software alone will not compensate for the lack of a strategic perspective on the need to become great at identifying, developing and retaining the best and brightest.  The software will help with compliance, but not with the creative art that is leadership development. 

The bottom-line:

My suggestion is walk before you run.  Start having conversations at all levels about talent development.  Work with your managers and leaders to deliver on the basics of goal setting, performance evaluation and delivering regular feedback.  Take the first steps via paper with succession planning and in creating individual development plans.  When you finally reach the point where these activities are part of the cultural norm, and you can sense the administrative burden creeping into the organization, then and only then should you take the time to embark on the software journey.

Buying software is easy.  Installing it is not so tough.  Deriving a great return from a software investment requires tremendous investment in pushing people and process changes.  Software is not the silver bullet you might be hoping for.  No matter how great it is.