Organizations are seeing the effects of globalization at ground level as they grapple with talent-management issues, especially the scarcity of talent with the skills needed to help their organization be successful players in the global economy.
In late 2006, the Human Capital Institute and Development Dimensions conducted a survey involving more than 750 talent-management leaders. The study revealed that a strong majority foresee that trade of knowledge and intellectual capital (86%) and goods and services (85%) across countries will increase over the next three years. They also see that competition for talent with the skills needed to work across borders will grow more fierce (91%).
“Managers will be more virtual and remote. They will have to adapt to an ever-changing workforce …. Outsourcing will continue to increase as will the need for managers to work in a global setting.” — survey respondent.
Organizations are also faced with making sure they have the right quality and quantity of global leadership talent. Leaders who are effective when working within the confines of their home country will not necessarily be effective when they have to lead across borders. Underscoring this point is a 2005 Conference Board study in which 97% of respondents indicated that general leadership skills are transferable into a global context, but only 50% were confident that leaders successful in one setting or region would be equally successful in another. Research conducted by DNL Global in 2005 revealed that only 20% of successful leaders possessed the attributes to make a direct leap to successful global leadership; another 40% could be developed into global leaders, while the remaining 40% were unlikely candidates, even with training, despite their success at home.
The process of sourcing global leaders is still more art than science. Yet, a credible competency framework is emerging. The most critical skills are not technical and not necessarily experiential; they are “softer” attributes. Energy, drive, spontaneity and flexibility are important. Self-reliance, an important trait for local project managers, gives way to a reliance on connections and a team focus for global project leaders. Clearly, VPs of HR and other talent management executives who responded to the survey, are looking for a special breed.
KEY global leader competencies
| Competencies |
Important (%) |
|
People black belt (brings out the best in people, exhibits authencity, builds trust, builds strategic working relationships)
|
93 |
|
Master mobilizer (displays propensity to lead, drives execution, exhibits leadership influence, mobilizes resources)
|
84 |
|
Visionary (conceptual thinker, navigates ambiguity)
|
81 |
|
Contextual chameleon (adaptable, exhibits cultural interpersonal effectiveness)
|
78 |
|
Intellectual grunt (thinks conceptually, makes strategic decisions)
|
76 |
|
Humility (receptive to feedback, possesses a learning orientation, ability to have accurate self insight)
|
70 |
|
Global explorer (exhibits learning agility)
|
69 |
|
Solid as a rock (authentic, resilient, displays operational decision-making/judgement)
|
69 |
|
Poster child (balances the demand of culture with results, leads through vision and values, displays executive disposition)
|
66 |
|
Unbridled energy.
|
60 |
Source: Development Dimension and Human Capital Institute
Lori Blackman, Founder and President, DNL Global. DNL Global offers solutions across the lifecycle of talent management. Allan Schweyer is the President and Executive Director of the Human Capital Institute and author of Talent Management Systems. Rich Wellins of Development Dimensions also contributed to this article.
