IBM recently spent literally months discussing talent issues with senior HR executives from all around the world.

The conclusions of the IBM Human Capital Study 2008 shine a light on a whole variety of HR issues and are definitely worth the effort of registering to receive the PDF report. The people they interviewed were very senior, and had a strong grasp on what it takes to succeed. There is strong relevance to China as well.  

The basic thrust of the study is that to enhance workforce performance you have to create an adaptable workforce, with a leadership that can guide individuals effectively, an integrated talent management model that covers the whole employee lifecycle, and the right information to deliver insight and measure success. There are a fair number of bromides in there, but the detail of the report backs up the conclusions.

For China there are a few specific results that need addressing.

Leadership That Lacks 

Overall in the Asia Pacific region the respondents cited a need to focus on leadership issues. Bench strength is an oxymoron in Asia Pacific, and 88% of respondents in this region cited leadership as an important issue, as compared to 76% globally.

This makes sense when you have a rapidly growing economy that is not given sufficient time to produce seasoned executives that can deal with daily operations, and lead at the same time. In China the challenges are simply greater than the rest of the Asia Pacific region, and managers not only have to walk and chew gum; they have make sure everyone else has gum too ... and are happy with the brand they are chewing. 

Just holding on to people is sufficient to keep China managers busy.

The problem is so serious that respondents say that the lack of leadership capability is a significant barrier to growth for many organizations and industries (my emphasis). This was a worldwide problem.

China appears to be having success with executive mentoring but the authors think this is not a scalable solution to the overall problem. It works for individual companies but there is also a well documented shortage of professional coaches and mentors in China, and elsewhere, so this is only a temporary fix.

Salary & Career That Lack

Compensation was a major factor for this region, in contrast to other continents where is was much lower down in the rankings. 46% of respondents in Asia Pacific said that compensation plays a strong role in attracting candidates, as compared with 33% in the rest of the world.

Staff turnover was up all across the board. A majority of HR Directors felt that they had what it takes to compete in the War for Talent, but it is worth noting that the vast majority of the respondents have a big arsenal of tools at their disposal. You may not.

This would start with a big brand that can bring candidates in the door, after which they can be sold on the advantages of the hiring company. Respondent HRDs can offer extensive operations that offer career potential, and a smorgasbord of challenging projects.

They can also be flexible on salary offers at the senior level, and have sufficient depth in their Organizational Chart to be able to finesse titles. This can be a big success factor in countries like China, where the job title is often as important as the position and salary.

The most important element in reducing turnover was seen to be career development, but this was listed lower than salary. 53% in Asia Pacific thought it important, versus 43% in the rest of the world. So you have to deal with the salary issue first before you can move up the Maslow Hierarchy of Needs.

Career development of its own accord will not deliver for you, except in some cases at the higher management levels.

Measures That Lack

Among the respondents there was a keenly felt needs for more data (metrics). Current talent shortages have a context and must be seen as part of the overal talent management process. Metrics for future talent needs are still lacking, and this makes it difficult for HR to deliver on current business needs.

To put it simply, if you don't know what skills you will need in the future your current hiring and retention is likely to be skewed. Operational effectiveness will then be compromised.

HR needs to have a better understanding of operations so that they can align the skills that employees offer with the business priorities of their company. An additional difficulty is that companies are currently asking staff to do-more-with-less, so HR has to know how to produce multi-skilled employees, before it's clear which skills will be needed.

The HRDs who responded to the survey seem to feel that they can do all this, but only if they have the human capital data to give them direction. They need insight into systems, processes, strategies, objectives, technology developments, and a whole variety of issues that they are blind to right now. The study concludes that HR is qualified and ready to take the lead in human capital management, despite contrary beliefs.

HR Not Lacking

In conclusion I would say that, first, you give the basic data to HR. Then you criticize them for not being effective. Until they get the data, they are reasonably well covered.

I say reasonably because the movement towards the use of metrics has been going on for decades, and every other department is onboard. Part of the problem we see is due to HR's resistance to most-things-new-or-different.

We all have a choice here.