A lack of strategy = a lack of talent

The retention and attraction of great talent is a real challenge across almost every industry I work with.

What is interesting is the approaches taken to try and deal with this.

Many are going for the immediate gratification approach, money, incentives, and title changes; others are focused on the post-Covid challenge of the hybrid working model and retaining a semblance of balance that we have become accustomed to.

Often in times of crisis, and for many talent is a crisis, we need to remember the basics.

As a pilot, we're taught in an emergency to, above all else, fly the plane. Knowing where you are on a map as you spiral into the ground isn't helpful.

One of the fundamentals is to have a team engaged in the business they are part of and know what their work is contributing towards. That they are working towards something more significant and can see the progress and impact they are having. Short and long-term, this has been proven to beat incentives every time. As simple as that sounds, it isn't getting the attention it deserves.

When Scott Keller & Mary Meaney researched motivation through the McKinsey & Company archives for their book Leading Organisations, they found that when there is alignment in the direction and employees understand their contribution, performance improves by 16%; however, commitment improves by 32%.

When teams have confidence in the direction and when they know the strategic plan and ideally have helped to shape it. When they are clear about how what they do impacts what needs to be done and what the future could look like, there is a stickiness that bonds a team even in the most challenging times.

The last two years have eroded not just the confidence in the direction but also the actual direction itself; many leaders I talk to are not clear themselves on where next, let alone able to inspire a team to go there with them. We must shake off the tactical, survival behaviour and get back to leading with strategy and inspiring teams with a stretching possibility.

Is it time for a reset to rebuild confidence and increase that much-needed commitment?