Guest Column: Human Capital Management: Leverage Your Existing IT Systems With EDM And Workflow To Hire And Manage Top Talent

By Laurel Sanders, Optical Image Technology

Human capital management—finding and retaining people whose competencies, skills, and personalities will deliver the maximum economic value to your organization—is more critical than ever. As business becomes increasingly global, employers are requiring broader skill sets, and creating a cost-efficient environment in which they can work effectively is essential. Finding and retaining the right people is challenging; hiring the wrong ones is costly. A well-structured organization with clearly defined job descriptions doesn't guarantee you will find, engage, and process strong candidates ahead of your competitors, nor does it ensure they will perform consistently after they are hired.

As the workplace continues to transform, organizational structures are flattening, enabling the project- and skill-based problem solving that modern, global, and mobile business increasingly needs. We're turning away from traditional hierarchies and beginning to look for ways to capitalize on the unique value each smart hire offers. Remember Aesop's fable, The Lion and the Mouse, where the tiny and ostensibly powerless mouse freed a captured lion by gnawing the ropes that ensnared him? Without the mouse's saw-like teeth and matchless speed, the lion would have breathed his last, helplessly tangled in a web of ropes. The moral of the story: Don't underestimate others' capabilities. It takes all kinds.

Every organization needs diverse talents to succeed in a world of constant change. When a job demands the unique skill of the mouse, you want to make sure you have him or her in your court, armed with the necessary tools and ready to respond without delay.