Talent Management, Learning and Development

Talent management is a popular theme in contemporary organizations (e.g., Marchington and Wilkinson 2013). Talent management concerns the development and retention of key individuals in the organization, and can be perceived from either an inclusive or exclusive approach. An inclusive approach is focused on all employees, and how their talents may be nurtured in an organization, while the exclusive approach is concerned with selecting key individuals who can make a big impact on the organization (e.g., Armstrong 2012). A dignified organization assumes that an inclusive approach is necessary, as dignified organizations are by definition inclusive institutions where people come together to create and contribute. Consequently, the work process should be organized such that all people are able to express their talents, develop these talents as well as hidden talents, and look for ways how they can make contributions to the organizational goals where they can fulfill their needs and potential. Hence, the role of development is crucial within the organizational democracy (Sauser 2009). As people are key to organizational functioning, the continuous development of employees is needed to ensure organizational viability over time (De Jong and Van Witteloostuijn 2004). Hence, we argue that in addition to time allocated to conduct work and achieve democratically set targets, there should be space and time for development and learning in a broader sense for all individuals.