Posted on: Monday, April 22, 2002

60 SECONDS ON BUSINESS
Develop talent from within your company

By Dr. Drake Beil
President, Solutions Inc.

Jan is a Maryknoll graduate who wound up in New York City working for a major media company. She was doing promotional work and doing it so well that her senior management noticed.

With hundreds of other employees in the building, it would have been easy for Jan to get lost in the bureaucracy, but she was found. The question was, now what do they do with her to get the most out of her talent?

They put Jan in a mentoring program that matched her, and about a dozen other "fast-track" employees, with senior executives. Taken under their wings with executive coaching sessions, these up-and-comers were invited periodically to senior management and strategic planning meetings. The impact on her performance was positive, and when you have the "best of the best" pumping on all cylinders, this is one way to groom future leaders and build out the bottom line simultaneously.

What to do with people like Jan is critical for a company's success.

What is there in your company to identify and then develop talent, including your own? What opportunities do employees have through the company to enhance their careers?

Are there shadowing programs (less lengthy than mentoring, these are one-day or several-day visits to another department or division, mostly for cross-training purposes)? Is there tuition reimbursement, and encouragement of further education? Is there a way to recognize not only the brightest, but also those who need additional training?

Reach Dr. Drake Beil at drake@60secondsonbusiness.