Killing two birds with one stone: to keep talent, foster effective communities

Have you heard about the ‘contest for talent?’ Some even call it the ‘war for talent.’ Lately, it has been on the lips of leaders of organizations ranging from non-profits to high-tech firms. The economy is slowing and losing jobs, leaving people out of work, but despite this, organizations are struggling to find and keep skilled workers. In this day and age, people are not willing, as they once were, to work at one company for fifty years, and even if they were, they would not receive the pensions that were commonplace in the past. Today, unsatisfied employees leave quickly, making holding on to talent that much more difficult for companies. People do not leave organizations. They do leave managers. Similarly, I believe people do not commit to organizations; they stay with communities.

In the late ‘80s, I worked in a computer company that ran an educational program to increase management potential in the company.  The program enabled ‘students’ from 12 countries to enter the business while undergoing a year of training. During its several years of life, a variety of groups went through it. Members of one group would work and live closely together, experiencing life in a new country and spending their free time together. Later, after I had finished the program, I remember meeting several colleagues from Canada, France, and South Africa at training events. Our shared past allowed an immediate bond based on similar experiences. As a result, it was easy for me to cooperate with these colleagues on a project.

However, this is but one example, featuring very extensive community building. Though similar effects are achieved through a variety of methods, in my experience, the key ingredient was diversity. In our case, it was diversity in nationality, educational background, profession, and gender.  Had it not been a ‘student’ program, having people of different ages would also have been useful.

Diversity, however, was not the only thing that was crucial to the creation of a dynamic and powerful network.  The group was large enough to allow for the making of both close friends and acquaintances. Adequate time was provided to build relationships and share experiences. Most of all, curiosity drove us beyond our differences to build a strong community

What can other organizations learn from this? Even in a shorter period and on the job, employers can use many of the same strategies presented in the example. For instance, they should:

1.  Bring a diverse group of people into the project. The ideal project team contains members of different and varied culture, education, profession, gender, age, familial status, work experience and other qualities and qualifications.

2.  Define the task broadly. A task or project can be defined at different levels.  For example, one way a task’s breadth can be defined is geographically. A product can be set as a task for each country, but if it is worldwide instead it will foster cooperation (and competition) across countries, generating a much better result.

3.  Provide holistic opportunities for the members to learn and work with each other.  Let project members bring themselves fully into the project, using all aspects of their being, from their knowledge to their sense of humor. Have the project team engage in team building exercises and learn together to strengthen bonds.

The ties that bind members of the educational program together are alive and well. Although by now we all work in different companies, I am in touch with several former colleagues and friends. With a shared project and goal, we would be an effective team.  Surely, your organization would not like to miss any opportunity to create, and, in your case, maintain, such a productive force.