CEO Doubles As Chief Talent Officer: Study

Monsterindia.com, an online career and recruitment solutions provider, revealed findings of its second edition of Monster.com - People Matters CEO as the Chief Talent Officer Study 2012. According to the study, which interviewed 126 CEO’s across a spectrum of industries in India, talent management continues to be seen as the most crucial priority for Indian CEOs. The study reiterates the importance of talent in the current business ecosystem, highlighting that 84 percent of the CEOs spend half their time on talent related activities; up from last year when 73 percent of CEOs reported spending more than one-fourth of their time on such matters.

As CEOs take on the role of Chief Talent Officer, they play an increasingly important role in determining the HR strategy of their companies. Today, 75 percent of HR heads report directly to CEOs signifying a transition of HR’s role in the boardroom.

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According to Sanjay Modi Managing Director, Monster.com (India, Middle East & South East Asia), “Today the Indian economy is hitting a rough patch due to widening fiscal deficit, declining pace of economic growth, compounded by global economic uncertainty. However against the bleak forecast, Indian companies are confident that the right business focus and optimal utilisation of resources will result in stronger organisations. Given this scenario, CEO’s today are investing more time and energy into their talent, who act as change agents in steering their organisations positively, driving competitiveness and business growth.”

Against the backdrop of the dynamic business environment defined by complexity and uncertainty, building teams, raising employee productivity and increasing employee motivation have emerged as the top three talent priorities for CEOs today. Retention of high-potential talent continues to remain crucial with 48 percent CEO’s affirming this trend. Interestingly, fear of retaining talent has been replaced by the need to build teams in line with business expectations, with employee motivation and productivity moving up in the priority list.

The survey highlights the top 5 activities that CEOs invest their time on:

1. Build the team to build the business: Building teams is the key priority for CEOs this year with 81 percent of CEOs expressing it as major concern. There is a dire need to get a strong team on board that can execute the company’s strategy and vision with excellence. Building a team is not only synonymous with sourcing talent but putting together a team with capabilities and competencies that complement one another.

2. Raise productivity levels: Optimising productivity and channeling employee’s energy have emerged as key concerns for 64 percent of CEOs. Focus remains on building a team that can create efficiencies and synergies for the organisation.

3. Increase employee motivation: 51 percent of surveyed CEO’s view employee motivation as its key HR priority. Against the backdrop of a dynamic working environment, CEO’s have become cognisant of the changing disposition of the young workforce - characterised by ambition and restlessness - CEOs, therefore, need to spend time formally and informally to constantly motivate employees.

4. Don’t let talent jump ship: Today the younger workforce are looking for quick returns and believe that hopping from job to job will fast track their growth. Hence, 48 percent of CEOs have believe in the importance of retaining talent. In this year’s report, retention no longer appears in the top three priorities for CEO’s compared to last year. Dim economic prospects might limit talent seeking new opportunities, which presents an opportunity for CEO’s today to personally mentor and nurture talent to develop their leadership in-house.

5. Focus on capability building: Companies have realised the importance of building an internal pipeline of talent by providing learning and development opportunities, which can result in retention and motivation. 42 percent of surveyed CEOs view this as a priority.

A closer look at the CEO’s talent related goals indicates that, companies are evaluating their leaders based on their time invested in honing their talent’s capabilities, including optimising productivity, grooming, engagement etc. This year, the study highlights maintaining talent productivity (76 percent), building internal capabilities (71 percent) and ensuring employee satisfaction (69 percent) as the top prerogatives of CEO’s in comparison to retention of high potential (74 percent) and overall talent (62 percent) and employee satisfaction/motivation (61 percent) listed last year.