Sustainability is a word that could be considered a new buzzword. Of course, sustainability isn’t a new concept, but it is only over the last couple of years that companies are taking notice of this, something we discuss in our previous article ‘is your company sustainable?’
However, how is sustainability relevant to the talent pool you have at your company?
Is your ecosystem interacting efficiently?
The individuals that make up your company are, to put it simply, one, ideally fine-tuned ecosystem. That each person who makes up the company has a role to play to ensure the smooth running of the ecosystem.
Now when it comes to larger companies, in some instances departments can be split into their own ecosystem that interacts with others, but for the most part it is important to treat the company as a whole as one tightly knitted web of workers.
These workers, or rather associates of the company will know their position, the tasks they are required to complete and the subsequent result of actioning these. They also know how their role may interact with others which is normally set via processes or thought-out plans.
However, where these processes or plans aren’t in place it can results in poor interactions and lack of efficiency.
For example, a simple task of proofreading a technical project plan document might fall upon a business analysis to sure that the client teams objectives and ideas of executing a project as feasible. Yet in the case where there isn’t a process to allocate this task to the most appropriate individual, holes in the plan might go a miss. Which could not only delay a project but cause an increase in the financial requirement.
On the other hand, one thing to consider when thinking about how efficient your company ecosystem is working, is by understanding any preconception between or within departments. From believing that one department isn’t carrying out a task they should, or that they aren’t equipped to do this and therefore, it is easier for the complaining department to keep hold of the task, the fluidity, transparency and operations between departments can become fractured and unsustainable.
Long-term objectives
As a company you have to be look three ways at once: in the present, in the tomorrow and in the distance future. Which is hard. But crucially essential.
By having an idea of what you hope to achieve in the distant future, can be incredibly beneficial when it comes to setting up a clear position direction of growth. You can identify potential gaps in your company and look to fill roles you would require before being in a desperate situation.
Break the ceiling to retain talent
Now we can’t talk about sustainable talent within a company without discussing one key area: retention.
To have a sustainable workforce, you have to minimize the turnover rate. It is that simple.
What isn’t always simple is how to retain that talent.
Often talent is lost due to two key factors: lack of growth or lack of value. Which can be easily resolved by have a clear path of intervention.
You can read our article here to understand easy ways of retaining talent.
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