Article at a glance:

Making a market in talent

• Companies that understand the value of talented people in generating brands, reputations, and other intangibles often spend considerable time recruiting such workers but drop the ball in providing them with opportunities to develop and grow.
• In large, hierarchical, and silo-based organizations, managers have difficulty finding talented people for new roles, and employees face barriers trying to find new development opportunities. This problem weakens efforts to build knowledge and assets across a broad swath of a company.
• Some progressive companies have set up talent markets where talented people can negotiate job transfers, obtain development opportunities more easily, build networks, and develop intangible assets.
• Talent markets have special characteristics for pricing, protocols, and disclosures. These must be established if the market is to function effectively.