From Finding Talent to Creating Talent

Volume 1 - Issue 3 ~ March 15, 2022

Welcome to the third edition of the “CIO Two Cents” newsletter from me, Yvette Kanouff, Partner at JC2 Ventures. Read on for insights into what is on the mind of CIOs at this moment in time.

*The JC2 Ventures team (John J. Chambers, Shannon Pina, John T. Chambers, me, and Pankaj Patel)*

My "2 Cents" OF the moment

**From Finding Talent to Creating Talent**

It’s difficult to have a discussion with anyone these days without talking about the immense shortage of talent. Great if you’re looking for a job, but difficult for company’s trying to execute on business plans. I find it interesting that a few years ago there was a fear of Artificial Intelligence taking jobs, yet Korn Ferry says that by 2030 the global talent shortage could reach 85.2 million people, resulting in trillions of dollars of opportunity loss. Add to this the salary convergence across geographies, it’s a tough situation for businesses.

My two cents are that we have to change the entire discussion – from finding talent to creation of talent. The creation of talent may sound odd, but let’s look at some facts:

- Yvette KanouFf

More than 40% of recent college graduates are “underemployed,” meaning they are working in jobs that don’t require a college education, according to Bloomberg.

Financial Advisor Magazine noted in an article that Harvard has more students from the richest 10% of the population than it does from the bottom 90%. What’s more, only about 20% of undergraduate placements are awarded on the basis of pure intellectual merit. The others are awarded on a preferential basis to athletes and children of alumni and big donors, with similar statistics across all of the Ivy Leagues. At the same time, more than 50 million Americans are stuck in low-wage jobs without much prospect of acquiring the skills that they need to climb out of poverty.

In response to the myth that the lack of diversity in tech is attributed to a lack of pipeline, Uber Chief Diversity Officer Bo Young Lee told TechCrunch last year: “If we want to claim that it’s a pipeline issue, we would first have to claim that we’ve hired what is available in the pipeline. It’s not a pipeline issue as much as it is a recruiting process challenge.”

It is clear that the criteria used by most companies for hiring is outdated.

We look for people that match specific experience metrics instead of looking for people that have criteria like aptitude, potential, base knowledge, and more important – the drive to succeed. I remember a line from an article in Fast Company stating, “A new era of talent spotting–one in which our evaluations of one another are based not on brawn, brains, experience, or competencies, but on potential.” Although written 8 years ago, I believe the exact points made then are even more relevant today.

I recently met Bhakti Vithalani, the CEO of BigSpring, a startup that creates content and communities that enable constant engagement for self-help and learning. Bhakti touts the use of mobile and social media as engagement mechanisms that can help not just white-collar, but all-collar workers to engage and learn market-relevant skills. With clients like Facebook, Google, Samsung, and more she gives examples of Uber drivers becoming highly skilled, successful software programmers. It’s fascinating. Self-learning platforms are thriving.

We must take an active approach to finding talent.

Forbes notes that Microsoft, Google, Verizon, Salesforce, and PwC are among the companies that have launched programs for school-age and adult learners to pivot into different industries. If we turn our hiring processes into growth opportunities, eliminating the barriers that exist for internal growth and departmental moves, we can open ourselves up to an entirely new era of talent with limitless potential to turn good companies into great ones. I often hear CIOs and other leaders talk about wishing their employees were hungrier and more driven. Let’s look for the potential, and let’s help bring these great people into the jobs they can do for us tomorrow.

Here are the Key Take-Aways:

Moving fast? I've got you covered:

(1)

We have to change the entire discussion around the talent shortage and hiring. Right now, companies look for people that match specific experience metrics instead of looking for people that have criteria like aptitude, potential, base knowledge, and the drive to succeed.

(2)

The use of mobile and social media as engagement mechanisms can help not just white-collar, but all-collar workers to engage and learn market-relevant skills, according to CEO of BigSpring.