Leveraging Skill-based Strategies by Unlocking Internal Mobility

Instead of external talent acquisition, companies are increasingly looking at internal talent development, and to be successful in the same, they need to focus on improving internal mobility.

FREMONT, CA:The dynamic business landscape has pushed African companies to identify that external talent acquisition and retention strategies are insufficient. As a consequence, they are now increasingly looking at internal talent development and progression, which is increasing the trend toward internal mobility.

Many rapidly growing companies are multiplying their investments in internal mobility to support their need for talented individuals when compared to 32 percent of all other organizations. In Africa, 42 percent of all companies are investing in internal mobility. However, for the success of internal mobility, companies should approach the situation proactively.

The fundamentals of internal mobility consist of two main elements; the awareness of internal job opportunities and the presence of employee development to make use of those opportunities. Although the awareness aspect generally falls under the umbrella of talent acquisition, the development section falls under talent management and HR, which consists of promoting and advancing careers within the company. As a result, an internal mobility strategy should encompass both elements to be effective.

Other factors that a successful internal mobility strategy requires are a career development culture, offering equitable opportunities for all employees, and ascertaining consistent feedback and communication. For organizations with rapid growth, planning, and preparation around internal mobility are vital and often involve a shift in how talent is perceived, which also includes prioritizing individuals to unleash their full potential.

The Role of AI and Machine Learning in Building a Skill-based People Strategy

The bases for talent development are steadily rising based on skills and companies can further improve employees' skills and by extension, internal mobility, by conducting fairer hiring processes and making smart decisions, when it comes to talent management. In addition, they can identify skill gaps within organizations and close them, to plan and prepare for the future.

Although skill-based development is currently not a practice in talent management, it is becoming increasingly common. Before using intermobility, companies implemented competency libraries and skill frameworks to boost talent management and development. Over the years, however, this approach has become outdated, and therefore, has not been maintained adequately. More recently, AI interface and machine learning are utilized to support skill-based developments, which in turn support organizations in improving internal mobility and therefore, create a consistent and applicable experience.

Machine learning also plays a vital role in helping organizations with their skill-based method to attain new talent. Identifying crucial skills for a role that is not dependent on education and previous job experiences, can help hire individuals based on potential, which expands pathways for candidates and opens up new talent pools.

Important steps involved in generating an efficient skill-based approach consist of defining key characteristics for future skills landscape, creating principles to structure skill-based decisions, detecting operational impacts that need attention to support skills in the new environment, and making use of personas to bring concepts to life. Irrespective of the development stage, going through every single step is vital, and the resulting document can be used as a guide for future decision-making on skills to support the overall strategy.