Contents
Managing Talent
What Is a Talent Conversation?
Knowing Your Talent
The Top Talent Conversation
The Solid Performer Conversation
The Potential Performer Conversation
The Underperformer Conversation
The ACS Development Model
Preparing for the Conversation
Assessment
Challenge
Support
Delivering the Conversation
Last Words
Suggested Readings
Key Point Summary
Lead Contributors
Ideas Into Action Guidebooks
Aimed at managers and executives who are concerned with their own and others’ development, each guidebook in this series gives specific advice on how to complete a developmental task or solve a leadership problem.
| LEAD CONTRIBUTORS | Roland Smith |
| Michael Campbell | |
| DIRECTOR OF ASSESSMENTS, TOOLS, AND PUBLICATIONS | Sylvester Taylor |
| MANAGER, PUBLICATION DEVELOPMENT | Peter Scisco |
| EDITOR | Stephen Rush |
| EDITOR | Karen Lewis |
| DESIGN AND LAYOUT | Joanne Ferguson |
| CONTRIBUTING ARTISTS | Laura J. Gibson |
| Chris Wilson, 29 & Company |
Copyright ©2011 Center for Creative Leadership.
All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher. Printed in the United States of America.
CCL No. 449
ISBN No. 978-1-60491-093-3
Center For Creative Leadership
Post Office Box 26300
Greensboro, North Carolina 27438-6300 336-288-7210
www.ccl.org/publications
pfeiffer.com/go/cclguidebooks
The Ideas Into Action Guidebook Series
This series of guidebooks draws on the practical knowledge that the Center for Creative Leadership (CCL®) has generated, since its inception in 1970, through its research and educational activity conducted in partnership with hundreds of thousands of managers and executives. Much of this knowledge is shared—in a way that is distinct from the typical university department, professional association, or consultancy. CCL is not simply a collection of individual experts, although the individual credentials of its staff are impressive; rather it is a community, with its members holding certain principles in common and working together to understand and generate practical responses to today’s leadership and organizational challenges.
The purpose of the series is to provide managers with specific advice on how to complete a developmental task or solve a leadership challenge. In doing that, the series carries out CCL’s mission to advance the understanding, practice, and development of leadership for the benefit of society worldwide. We think you will find the Ideas Into Action Guidebooks an important addition to your leadership toolkit.
Executive Brief
Talent management is the work of designing and implementing the strategies, systems, and processes needed for talent sustainability—an organization’s ability to continuously attract, develop, and retain people with the capabilities and commitment needed for current and future organizational success. Evidence from Gallup’s Q12 employee-engagement research shows that people want a relationship with those who lead them and that if they feel that their leaders and the organization overall care about their individual growth, development, and career success, they are more satisfied, committed, and engaged. Individual leaders can have a significant amount of influence over the development of organizational talent. One of the simplest yet most effective ways to achieve this is the talent conversation—a way of building on relationships that are based on rapport, collaboration, and mutual commitment in order to help the individuals you lead improve performance, focus development, and reach positive outcomes. From this guidebook you will learn how to prepare for and facilitate effective talent conversations by using the Center for Creative Leadership’s development framework of assessment, challenge, and support.