Talent management rethink required - and HR needs to take leading role

HR practitioners have been advised to rethink how to get the most out of employees during a period of economic uncertainty.

Lars Dalgaard, the chief executive of Success Factors, a talent management software supplier, told delegates at a European conference organised by the firm that HR teams should be closely monitoring the financial crisis and working out new ways to motivate employees in the downturn.

He said: "It is my personal view that this will not be a shallow recession it is likely to very long. As HR leaders, we should be watching it and working out how to make the most of the people we have."

In a series of presentation slides showing the decline of consumer confidence, bank loans as a percentage of output and global growth rates, Dalgaard stressed the credit crunch had already taken its toll on many businesses across all industries.

"Most of us have never experienced a recession like this. It is clear we need a completely new way of managing staff to allow business change to happen quickly. People like us [HR], need to take the leadership and go into management team meetings and say 'we need to do something new'."