Indian CEOs donning the hat of chief talent officers

Talent management is seen as the biggest challenge faced by the Indian chief executive officers (CEOs). According to 'People matters — CEO as the chief talent officer', a study by online career and recruitment solutions provider Monster.com, 80 per cent of the CEOs surveyed agree that human resource (HR) issues were undoubtedly core to the success of their companies.

The increasing fear of unavailability of the right talent to execute their companies’ strategies is leading CEOs to discuss people challenges more and more at the boardrooms. As the economy gains buoyancy, market conditions stabilise, especially against the backdrop of the post recessionary environment, the role of HR as a strategic business partner has gained prevalence.

“Human capital today is the biggest differentiator in the competitive business environment. This has led the CEOs to themselves don the hat of the chief talent officers as hiring and retention of the key talent becomes the topmost priority,” the study said.

According to the study, which sought opinions from CEOs of 114 leading companies across myriad of sectors, 73 per cent Indian CEOs spend more than one-fourth of their time directly on talent-related activities. While 68 per cent acknowledge that this time has increased in recent years, 79 per cent also affirm that this focus will only increase further next year.

“The world economy is going through a seismic shift from capital investment to intellectual capital. This shift, along with the change in the pace of business dynamics, is leading to compelling changes in the way people are to be managed. Most CEOs today play the role of the chief talent officers. It is imperative for the CEOs to attract, develop and retain the right talent as people are the biggest differentiator today for any business,” Sanjay Modi, managing director (India, West Asia and Southeast Asia), of Monster.com, said in a press release on Tuesday.

Indian businesses are looking at doubling or tripling their revenues in the next 3 to 5 years, and expect to grow their workforce at the same rate. Against this background, the survey reveals another finding according to which 65 per cent respondents have chosen “building teams to meet expected growth” as one of their top three priorities.

On the other hand, 56 per cent respondents list “building motivation and engagement” as their top priority, while another 52 per cent list “retention of key talent” priority, the release added.