Where's part three?. "This 2001 article updates McKinsey's influential 1997 survey on the war for talent in which researchers surveyed 6,900 managers (including 4,500 senior managers and corporate officers) at 56 large and midsize US companies. The update found that 89 percent of those surveyed thought it is more difficult to attract talented people now than it was three years ago, and 90 percent thought it is now more difficult to retain them. The update also found that the companies doing the best job of managing their talent deliver far better results for shareholders.

The take-away
Companies that neglect the imperative to manage their talent effectively pay the price. Tolerating underperformers—especially underperforming bosses—carries the highest price of all. Nearly 60 percent of the respondents strongly agreed they would be delighted if their companies were quicker to dismiss underperformers or to move them into less critical roles."

It's been 3 years.

Time for a new survey, this one in a challenging economy.  

• Post-mortem the dot-bomb. Did talent increase survival rates and market caps on startups?
• Do bigcos put talent priorities on hold in tough times?
• Since the first survey, how has awareness of the talent war affected management?
• As the problems get worse, are more human resource execs sitting at the strategy table?
• Is the talent pool getting wise to the war? Is worker behavior changing?

[diJEST: a journal of extrapreneurial strategy and technology]

----Martin----