A talent ecosystem is a vital tool in the battle for sourcing top talent for organizations. The way we source talent is rapidly changing, and investing in the right technologies and systems makes organizations more competitive and efficient.
A talent ecosystem borrows from systems theory and design thinking, connecting your tools and platforms with processes and adapting to business needs.
This blog post features excerpts from our ebook ‘Talent Without Borders: Using Technology to Build a Talent Ecosystem’. You can download it for free to discover more on how to leverage technology to flex and scale your talent strategy.
Even with the best talent ecosystem in the market, in order to be successful in an open market of talent, there are four key steps to consider.
1. Identify What You Really Need
There’s a lot of buzz going around in the industry about every technology you need to be successful to manage a contingent workforce. It’s important to know yourself and your program to understand which technologies will actually benefit your organization. Just because it exists doesn’t mean you need to implement it. Adding too many technologies will only confuse and frustrate your users.
2. Leverage Your Network for Support
Look beyond what your company offers today. Talk with vendors1, partners, suppliers, and clients to understand all possible technology sources and sourcing best practices. These activities will allow you to start expanding and curating a talent ecosystem that makes sense for your organization. Many of your partners may already have vetting in place for their technology partners, saving you time and money in the process.
3. Select and Implement Your Chosen Technologies
As you start to explore technology partnerships outside of your network, be sure to do your homework. We recommend implementing one technology at a time. During your vetting process, make sure to complete RFIs if needed and ask for demos. Think about your process, ask relevant questions, and see what solutions they can offer you when you describe your pain points.
4. Arrange Training and Change Management
Inevitably, part of altering any traditional practice involves various levels of change management. You may have to closely examine how your role as a leader in driving this organizational change and how your management style may need to adapt or evolve through the process. Additionally, other leaders in your organization will be facing the same demands.
This could involve managing a mix of employees remotely and on-site, different types of employees (contractors, freelancers, independent contractors), and how to properly lead and execute project strategies with this new workforce mix.
A critical element of your talent ecosystem involves training and education across your organization. This includes reskilling your workforce, cross-training in other areas based on skills, and providing internal and external training.
While training and education might only be for your full-time employees today, the future strategy should include contractors, freelancers, and all non-employee talent associated with your organization. This is an investment in your total talent equity and not just a single segment. Cross-functional teams have allowed technology to scale at large with Agile methodologies and go to market with innovative solutions. When these principles are applied to talent acquisition, organizations can start to see the same benefits.
Discover more about talent ecosystems with our ebook ‘Talent Without Borders: Using Technology to Build a Talent Ecosystem’.
Reference:
1 Latimer, L. ‘Five Tips to Cultivate an Open Talent Ecosystem’. Ellevate Network. Available online.
Meet the Expert
Taylor Ramchandani – VP of Strategy
Taylor Ramchandani is responsible for the management and strategic planning of the VectorVMS vendor management system. Taylor is committed to client satisfaction and to ensuring VectorVMS technology meets the current and future needs of clients and managed service providers (MSPs). She uses market research and in-depth industry experience to create products and services that make extended workforce management efficient and intuitive. Taylor oversees product development, marketing, and business partnerships for VectorVMS and is responsible for driving innovation for contingent workforce management. Connect with her on LinkedIn.
