Hello Lillian & Brittany,

I have enjoyed your dialogue regarding the TSL approach to viewing talent as an invaluable resource in our organizations. Feel free to check out their discussion, here & here.

Appreciating Talent

Call it my inexperience or boil it down to a millennial’s entitlement, but I have long held a desire to have my boss approach me to talk about career development. In my last organization, I was a small cog in a giant machine. Our organization had many needs, but seemingly nowhere to go (career advancement-wise). In the back of my mind, I wished for someone on our management team to determine a new strategic direction or focus upon which to move us all forward (See “People are Part of the Solution,” Boyder, 2018). Could a new initiative open up the potential for career advancement or even provide a lateral move more fitting to an employees’ gifts and talents?

The problem in our organization was a strong gravitational pull towards the status quo. We were conditioned to avoid causing ripples. Similar to Brittany’s organization (Mann, 2018), our organization relied on a few executives for decision-making—leaving the rest of us (read: stakeholders) in the dark about changes coming down the pipe. On occasion, even staff roles changed without discussion with the employee.

As a TSL, I want to appreciate the talent placed under my care. Kaye & Giulioni (2012) observe the key to helping employees grow and develop in their careers is by merely keeping the conversation open: “When it comes to the manager’s role in [career] development, talk is actually the most precious and results-driving commodity you have to share” (p. 16-17).

It seems so obvious to state that intentional conversations can make an employee feel valued—however, TSLs add value to conventional leadership methods when they exercise mindfulness. Our employees want to know they matter—and we owe it to them to champion their development in any way we can.

As Lillian has alluded to in her blog: if championing an employee means letting them go, then TSLs have an opportunity to help employees leave well.

References

Boyder (2018). A perspective on the influence of TSL on the strategic process || BT1. Retrieved from https://create.twu.ca/lboyd79/2018/10/09/blog1-bt1/

Kaye, B., & Guilioni, J. W. (2012). Help them grow or watch them go: Career conversations employees want. San Francisco, CA: Berrett-Koehler.

Mann, B. (2018). Response to a perspective on the influence of TSL on the strategic process || BT1. Retrieved from https://create.twu.ca/brittanysportfolio/2018/10/12/311/