By Lisa Martin

We once talked about and worried about the dramatic shift from a manufacturing economy to a service economy, and then from a service economy to a knowledge economy.

We’re now in the midst of an even more profound revolution. Changing workforce demographics combined with recent economic shifts have set the stage for the transition from the knowledge economy to the talent economy.

At the organizational level, the knowledge economy is realized with the creation and transfer of knowledge by talent in line with organizational goals.

The talent economy is based on matching the demand for talent with the supply for it. Demographics do not lie. There soon will not be enough talent to meet the need. In particular, top talent will be much sought after.

In a talent economy, the talent an organization needs to run its projects and keep its promises to its customers will often outweigh the supply it can grow internally or hire externally.

Thus: To thrive in a talent economy, organizations need to identify, retain and develop top talent at all levels.

Why Top Talent Matters? Organizations that nurture top talent have enormous advantages over their competitors. The differentiator today is in innovative, critically thinking, prudent risk-taking, ambitious, talent.

Not all talent is created equal and you don’t need all talent to be outstanding, but you do need a core group who will drive the success of your business. A core group of top talent who are committed, not just compliant, will put your organization in the lead. This core is determined by your strategy.

The innovation and opportunity that differentiate your business and thrust it into market dominance may not have been determined yet. The key to capitalizing on that innovation is a cadre of smart people who are as dedicated to your business success as they are to their careers. That they see the two intertwined and interlocked, not mutually exclusive or distantly related.

These extraordinarily talented individuals:

• Act as owners would, preserving resources and maximizing results.
• Remain and thrive in your organization because it represents their ideal environment.
• Don’t view “work” or even a “job,” but rather a “career” as their goal.
• Never leave your organization and take key clients and customers with them.
• Can’t be “purchased” but rather seek career environments which maximize the application of their talents.
• Consistently recruit new customers and solidify the loyalty of existing customers.

What is ROET? A changing economy, combined with less available talent (demographic shifts), competition, and increasingly educated consumers and customers, provide the perfect storm for failure and/or success based on your ability to find, keep and grow highly talented people.

Smart companies implicitly know the value of retaining and developing the brightest and best. If you have top talent in your midst, your return on extraordinary talent (ROET) is dramatically increased. Attraction, retention, leadership capacity, career development, succession planning, morale and performance, innovation, repute, revenue and profits are all improved. While hiring mistakes, disengagement, dysfunction, dissatisfaction, poaching and customer complaints are decreased.

Here’s to you finding, growing and keep the top talent that will ensure you outpace and outperform others in the talent economy.

© Copyright 2010. Lisa Martin. All rights reserved.