BOSTON, MA--(Marketwire - November 12, 2008) - A limited and narrowing skilled labor market,
which is further accentuated by insufficient existing management bench
strength, is forcing organizations to focus resources on planning for
future leadership needs. Coupling these findings with the continued
weakening of the global economy, and the heightened importance
organizations place on succession management will continue to grow this
focus. How Best-in-Class organizations address the pressures of a
tightened labor market, as well as the results they've achieved by doing
so, are highlighted in a recent research by Aberdeen Group, a Harte-Hanks
Company (
NYSE:
HHS). To obtain a complimentary copy of the report, visit:
http://www.aberdeen.com/link/sponsor.asp?cid=5358
In the new benchmark report by Aberdeen titled, "Succession Management:
Addressing the Leadership Development Challenge," the research revealed
that the foundation of an effective succession management program lies in a
solid competency framework as well as a standardized performance management
process. In fact, organizations that achieved Aberdeen's Best-in-Class
designation for this study are 45% more likely than all other organizations
to have clearly defined success profiles (knowledge, experience,
competencies and personal attitudes) for key positions. "When it comes to
identifying high-potential talent, it is critical to evaluate their
performance equally," said Jayson Saba, senior research associate, human
capital management at Aberdeen. "Viewing succession candidates through the
same looking glass allows organizations to compare apples to apples and
make better decisions for selecting leadership candidates."
Moreover, this research highlights the importance of establishing
accountability at the management ranks for ensuring a qualified leadership
pipeline. To this point, Best-in-Class organizations are 62% more likely
than Laggard organizations to have a systematic process where senior
managers regularly review the performance and progress of high-potentials
enrolled in development programs. According to Kevin Martin, Aberdeen's
vice president and principal analyst for human capital management, "This
research complements and reinforces research we have conducted across other
elements of talent management, specifically performance management and
learning and development, where we see Best-in-Class organizations view
employee development more as a collective effort rather than an
individual's sole responsibility."
The research also found that integrating succession data with other talent
management elements has yielded great benefits in terms of workforce
knowledge management. Best-in-Class organizations are more than twice as
likely as Laggards to integrate succession data with performance management
and learning and development applications. Saba added, "Integrating talent
management data provides organizations more visibility into the development
of high-potentials and improves their decision-making ability when it comes
to determining promotion readiness."
A complimentary copy of this report is made available due in part by the
following underwriters: DDI, Taleo, and Zapoint. To obtain a
complimentary copy of the report, visit:
http://www.aberdeen.com/link/sponsor.asp?cid=5358
For additional access to complimentary Human Capital Research, please visit
http://research.aberdeen.com/index.php/Human-Capital-Management/
About Aberdeen Group, a Harte-Hanks Company
Aberdeen is a leading provider of fact-based research and market
intelligence that delivers demonstrable results. Having benchmarked more
than 30,000 companies in the past two years, Aberdeen is uniquely
positioned to educate users to action: driving market awareness, creating
demand, enabling sales, and delivering meaningful return-on-investment
analysis. As the trusted advisor to the global technology markets,
corporations turn to Aberdeen™ for insights that drive decisions.
As a Harte-Hanks Company, Aberdeen plays a key role of putting content in
context for the global direct and targeted marketing company. Aberdeen's
analytical and independent view of the "customer optimization" process of
Harte-Hanks (Information - Opportunity - Insight - Engagement -
Interaction) extends the client value and accentuates the strategic role
Harte-Hanks brings to the market. For additional information, visit
Aberdeen
http://www.aberdeen.com or call (617) 723-7890, or to learn more
about Harte-Hanks, call (800) 456-9748 or go to
http://www.harte-hanks.com.
© 2008 Aberdeen Group, Inc., a Harte-Hanks Company
451 D Street, Suite 710
Boston, Massachusetts 02210-1928
Telephone: (617) 854-5200
Fax: (617) 723-7897
www.aberdeen.com
Contact Information: Media Contact:
Jayson Saba
Aberdeen Harte-Hanks
(617) 854-5224
Jayson.saba@aberdeen.com