War for Talent
War for Talent
The war for talent is a term that describes the situation where employers, especially technology firms have to compete for attracting and retaining employees. It is caused by factors such as demographic shifts, technological changes, skill shortages, and increased demand for knowledge workers globally. The war on talent can have significant implications for the performance and success of organisations. It also has a direct effect on reflexive careers especially the satisfaction and well-being of employees in the burgeoning Tech Sector.
Coursework Questions
Drawing on relevant literature critically discuss:
2) How the organisations corporate and people management) strategy can help attract and retain talent (1000 words)
3) The role of culture and leadership in creating a climate conducive to talent attraction, development, and retention (1000 words)
4) Explore the implications of considering employees as critical stakeholders in a competitive talent landscape, and discuss whether a CSR strategy can attract and retain top talent? (1000 words)
Contents
1.0Assessment Guidelines2.0Essay Structure3.0Wordcount4.0Using the Systigrates Case Study5.0Critical Thinking6.0Independent Research8.0Recommended Structure for Question 2: How the organisations corporate and people management strategy can help attract and retain talent9.0Recommended Structure for Question 3: The role of culture and leadership in creating a climate conducive to talent attraction, development and retention10.0Recommended Structure for Question 4: Explore the implications of considering employees as critical stakeholders in a competitive talent landscape, and discuss whether a CSR strategy can attract and retain top talent? (1000 words)A SINGLE DOCUMENT SHOULD BE SUBMITTED CONSISTING OF THE FOUR ESSAYS. A SINGLE COVER SHEET SHOULD BE USED WITH THE COMBINED WORD COUNT FOR ALL ESSAYS.EACH OF YOUR FOUR ESSAYS SHOULD HAVE ITS OWN REFERENCE LIST AT THE END OF EACH ESSAY OR ALTERNATIVELY YOU CAN HAVE A COMBINED REFERENCE LIST AT THE VERY END.
Assessment Guidelines
This guide is designed to help you structure your assignment effectively and point out the helpful resources you can use to begin. As well as helping to organise and structure your essay, this guide will help you understand the role of critical thinking and independent research in crafting your responses.
Essay Structure
We provide below in Sections 7 to 10 a suggested layout for each of your assignment questions to ensure you address all necessary points. As a general rule we suggest a wordcount structure of approximately 100 words each for theIntroductionandConclusionparagraphs. We suggest theMain Bodyshould consist of 3 to 4 paragraphs of between 150 and 200 words each. It is important to not go over the 1000 word limit for each of the essays as this will result in reduction of your grade.
Wordcount
Astrict word count policy for all written submissions in NBS is in force. This policy aims to encourage students to express their ideas clearly and succinctly, within a defined scope. Adherence to the word count limit is considered an essential component of the submission criteria. The maximum word limit for any written submission is set at 1,000 words. This limit has been carefully chosen to allow students sufficient space to articulate their arguments effectively while ensuring that the evaluation process remains focused and equitable.
Exclusions from the Word Count
To ensure fairness and clarity, the following elements of a written submission are excluded from the total word count:
In-text citations: Citations within the text that follow the prescribed academic citation style of Harvard referencingwill not contribute to the word count.
Reference list: The comprehensive list of sources cited in the submission, provided at the end of the document, is also excluded from the word count.
Submissions exceeding the 1,000-word limit will be subject to a grade penalty as follows:
Excess Words: For any number of words over the 1,000-word limit, the submission's grade will be downgraded by one grade point.
Word Count Verification: Students are required to include a word count declaration at the start of their submission, stating the total number of words excluding in-text citations and the reference list.
Discrepancies: In cases where significant discrepancies are found between the declared and actual word counts, further penalties may apply, subject to the instructor's discretion.
This policy is grounded in the belief that academic excellence is not merely a reflection of one's knowledge but also the ability to communicate ideas in a clear, concise, and effective manner. By adhering to the word count limit, students demonstrate their ability to distill complex concepts into essential components and engage with academic standards of writing.
Using the Systigrates Case Study
The assessment is based on the idea of war for talent in the Tech sector. Remember that Systigrates is a Tech/IT organisation.Feel free to use info from the case primarily in relation to questions 2 (Corporate and People Management Strategy) and 3 (Culture and Leadership).In relation to questions 1 (Reflexive Careers) and 4 (CSR/Shareholder vs Stakeholder) you can make some reasonable assumptions around how a Tech company like Systigrates could approach these issues. This opens the door for you to bring in examples from your own experience and other companies, showcasing your ability to research independently.
Critical Thinking
Engaging critically with the Systigrates case and beyond means questioning the information presented, comparing it with other academic sources, and evaluating the effectiveness of different strategies and theories. This approach will deepen your understanding and enhance your analytical skills.
Independent Research
Venturing beyond the case study to include examples from other companies shows your initiative in exploring real-world applications. This not only broadens your perspective but also demonstrates your ability to apply theoretical concepts to practical scenarios. Venturing beyond the academic material provided in this guide and in our lectures and seminars is an opportunity to showcase your critical thinking and research skills. Don't hesitate to explore diverse but academically acceptable sources to enrich your arguments.
Recommended Structure for Question 2: How the organisations corporate and people management strategy can help attract and retain talentWe suggest you follow the structure below (including the headings in bold). We are also providing a reminder of the content we covered which relates to each question and outline a list of resources available to get you started on each question.
Introduction (around 100 words)
This will be a short summary of what the essay will be focusing on, i.e. an emphasis on discussing how corporate strategy but also people management strategy may allow an IT company (Systigrates) to win the war for talent.
Main Body: Corporate and People Management Strategy (750 words)
Here you can start with the role of corporate strategy and how it may help attract/retain talent. To do so you need to consider the role of the companys vision(part of how their strategy is manifested) and associated values in helping attract prospective employees. As their vision and values focus on innovation and being market leaders this suggests that it could be an attractive proposition to knowledge workers in the IT sector, as in theory at least they would look for opportunities to exercise their creativity and of course working for an established organisation that has plans to further strengthen their position helps provide reassurance around employment security. The model by Hatch and Shultz (available in the resource list on NOW) could assist you in backing up this type of discussion. Although the model is about corporate branding (how a company presents itself and is perceived by consumers and other stakeholders) the point it makes can be extended to employer branding in terms of how prospective employees (as one particular type of stakeholder) make sense of the company through the vision they provide, the values that may be communicated to external audiences (via a corporate website for example) etc. Here, it can be assumed that as mentioned above the vision and values could in theory create an appealing image to prospective employees and of course the question on whether there is a vision/culture gap (which prospective employees can only see once they are hired) may have an effect on whether the company can retain talent.IfSystigrates do not deliver on what they promise and there are discrepancies between rhetoric and reality this may have an adverse effect on retention.
Moving on you need to consider the role of People Management Strategy (i.e. Strategic HRM) on attracting and retaining talent. Here you need to revise theories we covered in the online lecture on Strategic HRM (week 3) and in the seminar for week 4. These were Best Practice/High Commitment HRM, Best Fit and Resource Based View of the Firm/Human Capital. Youneed notuse all three but we are just reminding you there is more than one option. Considering the fact Systigrates targetsknowledge workersit could be assumed that all three perspectives lead to the same conclusion: the organisation needs to employ a set of HRM policies resembling the high commitment approach (sophisticated recruitment and selection, investment in skills/knowledge through training/development initiatives, competitive salary, flexible working policies, performance management etc). The best practice and human capital approaches support this argument. In terms of the best fit approach which suggests HRM policies flow from the companys strategy we reach the same conclusion. The company employs a strategy based on innovation which suggests knowledge workers need to be subjected to the same type of treatment (emphasis on skills etc).
Conclusion (100 words)
Summarise the main body and assert the analytical conclusion reached.
Resources to get you started on this questionHatch and Shultz article on resource list.
Chapters 4(Corporate Strategy)and 5(HRM Strategy) of core textbook on resource list: Farnham, D. 2015. Human Resource Management in Context.
Review article available in theseminar folder for week 3: Armstrong A., Brown, D. 2019. Strategic Human Resource Management: Back to the future? A literature review, Institute for Employment Studies.
Recommended Structure for Question 3: The role of culture and leadership in creating a climate conducive to talent attraction, development and retentionWe suggest you follow the structure below (including the headings in bold). We are also providing a reminder of the content we covered which relates to each question and outline a list of resources available to get you started on each question.
Introduction (around 100 words)
This will be a short summary of what the essay will be focusing on, i.e. an emphasis on culture and leadership and how they may which may allow an IT company (Systigrates) to win the war for talent.
Main Body: Leadership and Culture (750 words)
In this section you need to discuss the role of culture and leadership. Culture (and engagement) was discussed in the week 3 seminar in conjunction to this question.
It was suggested that you need to consider the type of culture an IT company is likely to have (based also on some points from the case) and which would be suitable toknowledge workers.We looked at the types by Handy (including task) and Groysberg et al. 2018 (including learning). You may also want to consider the model by Cameron and Quinn (especially adhocracy which is similar to the task/learning cultures in Handy and Groysberg et al.) which was mentioned in the Fujitsu lecture (slides available in the lecture programme folder for week 2).We then examined how these types of culture may help engage knowledge workers by looking at Kahns three conditions of engagement: meaningfulness (interesting/challenging work), psychological safety (freedom to share ideas and speak ones mind without fear of repercussions) and availability (resources in place to allow individuals to be able to be available, i.e. focused and absorbed whilst at work). So, using a bit of info from the case you need to consider how the above types help address these conditions and thus create a climate attractive to knowledge workers.
In terms of leadership you need to think which types of leadership would match the types of culture discussed above. Given the emphasis on creativity, experimentation, valuing knowledge workers expertise etc it seems that transformational leadership may be more suitable here. This type of point is also made by the Cameron and Quinn model where they suggest that the leader in an innovative organisation would tend to be a visionary. In terms of transformational leadershipelements such as intellectual stimulation ally with meaningfulness (discussed in week 3) and so it is the type of approach to which knowledge workers would respond positively. The same goes for individual consideration (getting star treatment as knowledge workers/assets to the company to put it roughly).
Due to the companys emphasis on creativity etc and the expectation on the part of prospective employees for a climate conducive to autonomy, room for discretion and overall lack of micro-management another approach which may be considered relevant is distributed/shared leadership. Although there is not any explicit info on that in the case it is a reasonable assumption that can be made and it allies with task culture where individual expertise is valued and decision making is shared. For the same reasons, the laissez faire style from the behavioural approach may be considered suitable.
You will need to fully justify your answer by elaborating on relevant theory. Due to the 750 word limit you will probably need to go with just one leadership theory out of the options we outlined above.
Conclusion (100 words)
Summarise the main body and assert the analytical conclusion reached.
Resources to get you started on the Culture/Leadership questionCore textbook by Clegg et al. chapters 4 and 5 on leadership and culture, available on resource listEmployee Engagement in Theory and Practice in the general background reading section of the resource list, chapters 1 and 3 but you may find more.
Kahn., W.A.1990. Psychological Conditions of Personal Engagement and Disengagement at Work, Academy of Management Journal, 33(4): 692-724., available on resource list.
Saks, A.M. 2006. Antecedents and Consequences of Employee Engagement, Journal of Managerial Psychology, 21(7): 600 619., available on resource list.
Martin, J. 2004. Organisational Culture, research paper, Stanford University., available in theseminar folder for week 2.
Groysberg, B., Lee. J., Price, J., Cheng Y.J. 2018. The Leaders Guide To Corporate Culture: How To Manage The Eight Critical Elements of Organisational Life, Harvard Business Review, 96: 44-52., available on resource list.
Avolio, B.J., Waldman, D.A., Yammarino, F.J. 1991. Leading in the 1990s: The Four Is of Transformational Leadership, Journal of European Industrial Training, 15(4): 9-16., available on resource listBolden, R.2011. Distributed Leadership in Organisations: A Review of Theory and Research, International Journal of Management Reviews, 13: 251-69., available on resource list.
Recommended Structure for Question 4: Explore the implications of considering employees as critical stakeholders in a competitive talent landscape, and discuss whether a CSR strategy can attract and retain top talent? (1000 words)
We suggest you follow the structure below (including the headings in bold). We are also providing a reminder of the content we covered which relates to each question and outline a list of resources available to get you started on each question.
Introduction (around 100 words)
This will be a short summary of what the essay will be explaining the Stakeholder vs Shareholder Debate and whether or not the employee is as salient a stakeholder as the shareholder. It will explain how and why Stakeholder Theory is a strategy, and as such how it and a CSR strategy can attract and retain top talent. The seminar work in week 6 will be immensely helpful in answering this question.
Main Body: CSR/Employees as Critical Stakeholders (750 words)
Analyze the implications of considering employees as key stakeholders on organizational culture, performance, and employer branding. Highlight the impact on recruitment and employee satisfaction. Discuss how a robust CSR strategy can serve as a magnet for attracting top talent, emphasizing CSR's role in aligning company values with those of potential employees. Evaluate the effectiveness of CSR strategies in retaining talent, considering factors like employee engagement, loyalty, and the internal perception of company values and ethics.
Feel Free to use the real life case study of the Fujitsu/Horizon Postmasters Scandal to inform your answer. You can also use the Systigrates Case Study to breathe life into any particular strategy and how it might be effective or not.
Conclusion (100 words)
Summarize the strategic importance (or not) of CSR in attracting and retaining talent.
Resources to get you started on this questionSee the television material and BBC News coverage provided in Seminar Week 6
See the Harvard Business Review Article on Creating Shared Value by Porter & Kramer 2006 available in the seminar section of week 6 of POS too and in the resource list.
Laaser, K. and Karlsson, J.C., 2022. Towards a sociology of meaningful work.Work, Employment and Society,36(5), pp.798-815.
Van Buren, H.J., 2003. Boundaryless careers and employability obligations.Business Ethics Quarterly,13(2), pp.131-149.
