Talent Management in the Post-Covid World
Talent management is the art of identifying, training, motivating and nurturing those special people, who we think have high potential and are therefore worth investing in.
In the post-Covid world, there will be more remote working from home, which means that the specific qualities that we use to define those with high potential has changed, which means that talent management must also change.
Talent management post-Covid has changed the specific attributes that define the concept of people with high potential, but before we get into the details of those changes, we need to reaffirm that many things have not changed and never will.
Talent managers have always sought people with a set of core, universal qualities that distinguish them as worthy of investment.
Talent managers look for these personal factors:
- Raw Intelligence.
- Natural talent.
- Willingness to learn.
- Honesty.
- Commitment.
- Cooperative nature.
Reflective Question:
What would be the consequence of any person of talent, who was marred by any one of the following flaws:
- Idiocy.
- Ineptitude.
- Unwilling to learn.
- Dishonesty.
- A lack of commitment.
- Uncooperative nature.
The personal qualities that were sought-after pre-Covid, are now somewhat obsolete and new qualities have taken their place.
| Pre-Covid | Post-Covid |
| Charismatic. Personal magnetism and charm. | Personal initiative. The ability to act without being told. |
| Rapport builder: Friendly, likable, possessing the gift of the gab. | Self-disciplined. Able to make themselves do what they don't want to do. |
|
Good verbal communicator. Good with the spoken word, motivating and upbeat personality. |
Excellent written communicator. Able to express their exact meaning in writing. |
Reflective questions:
- What qualities which used to be in-demand in a busy, open-plan office, may now be considered, non-essential?
- Which qualities, that used to be not important, have become more important when people are required to work from home, away from their colleagues?
Training talent.
Talent management and training was often done via mentoring, by a more senior member of the team.
Post-Covid, it may not be possible to be personally mentored, so the rising stars, must be ready, willing and able to self-study. They must be more able to learn by reflecting on their own personal experience.
| Pre-Covid Training | Post-Covid Training |
| Mentoring | Self-study |
| Coaching | Reflective learning |
| Learn by modelling examples | Grasp the learning experience from any defeats |
Reflective questions:
- How many people are able to judge themselves objectively, in order to discover their weak points, admit to them, and work to eliminate them? Why would this ability be crucial to post-Covid talent?
- How many people are blind to their weaknesses and justify them, rather than rectify them? Would these people be good candidates for the post-Covid talent?
Motivating and nurturing people with talent.
In the pre-Covid times motivation came from outside agencies such as managers and team leaders, who would supply a constant stream of appreciation, thanks and praise, a pleasant working environment and friendly office atmosphere.
Those days are gone.
Post-Covid, people must be able to motivate themselves, by more introverted means:
- Personal goal setting and high ambition.
- High personal standards.
- Good prioritisation skills.
Talent spotters need to identify those people who have an internal locus of control and who do not have a need for constant social interaction and friendly company.
Talent spotters must recalibrate their scales, and now look for a different kind of talent.
| Pre-Covid Motivation | Post-Covid Motivation |
| Appreciation, thanks and praise | Goal setting and high ambition |
| Pleasant work environment | High personal standards |
| Friendly office atmosphere | Good prioritisation skills |
post-Covid talent
In business, post-Covid talent is a type of staff who 1) act on their own without close control, 2) keep learning through self-study, 3) write with clear, exact words online, and 4) drive themselves with strong inner goals. Remove any one trait and the person is no longer post-Covid talent.
CG4D Definition
Context: Business
Genus: Staff type
- Works without close supervision, showing personal initiative
- Learns alone through self-study and reflection
- Communicates clearly in writing across digital tools
- Holds strong inner drive based on personal goals and high standards
Article Summary
After Covid, top talent is not defined by charm but by the power to work alone, learn fast and hit goals from any place; wise managers spot this self-driven worker, train through self-study, motivate with clear aims and judge success on results, not on time at the desk.