What happens to talent in a time of crisis?

There are a lot of unsolicited applications in the mail, and currently employees think twice before they change jobs. But even if it has become more difficult to get jobs and you don't need to coax people to stay, this should not make the companies forget the development of its people, its talent. Talent/employee development is still required to keep the organisation fit.

The situation is this: there is plenty of undiscovered talent in the companies' departments and branches. This puts demands on managers. Executives and managers should have long-range focus on their employees' potential - also in times of crisis - where there is a tendency to focus on here-and-now or short term solutions.

In a survey of which elements make excellent talent scouts I have observed three professional talent scouts in sports, film and the corporate world. We filmed and interviewed them, compared what they did and how they described it themselves.

One of the things they had in common was that the talent itself - the quality they were looking for - constitutes a relatively small part of their basis for decision. Of course the talent has to be there; you can't make a dancer out of a guy with to left legs. But willpower, humility and the ability to be a team player determines whether the individual has a viable potential for development.

At the same time it is of crucial importance that the talent scout’s own expectations are prioritised and clearly expressed, and that the talent scout works in a focused manner on his/her own will, humility and team play.

The things talent scouts are good at are elements that can be learned. And it is something all leaders and managers should learn. One training course is not enough. The necessary self-awareness is achieved through ongoing work on yourself as a leader via training, development and the personal courage to look inward.

It takes self-awareness and courage to be a competent leader who develops competent employees.

Talent scouts have developed a method for resetting 'the first impression' often blocking the ability to see the potential in another person. They focus on finding the good elements and discovering potential - always present in any human being.

In the long run we cannot afford not to invest in talent - neither for the company nor for the individual leader/manager. An investment in talent today leads to better performance tomorrow!