For the past decade (plus), total talent management has often been akin to chasing a mirage in the business landscape—a tantalizing concept that’s been discussed widely, but rarely (very rarely) seen in its entirety within global organizations. While we’ve occasionally encountered fragments of total talent programs in a few enterprises, and observed specific facets of these endeavors, like total talent acquisition and procurement and HR collaboration, being embraced by forward-thinking workforce management solutions (and enterprise programs), the full realization of this concept has remained an elusive pursuit.
Total talent intelligence serves as the foundational bedrock of comprehensive talent management, drawing a wealth of invaluable insights from the combined workforce of both full-time employees and non-employees. This multifaceted approach hinges on the seamless integration of data originating from diverse sources, including Human Resources Information Systems (HRIS), Vendor Management Systems (VMS), Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS), Freelancer Management Systems (FMS), and an array of analogous platforms like direct sourcing, digital staffing, etc. This comprehensive data synthesis empowers organizations with unprecedented depth and clarity into their entire talent pool, ushering in a new era of data-driven workforce management.
In the current workforce landscape, a significant transformation is underway. With nearly half of the average organization’s workforce composed of contingent talent, the concept of total talent intelligence has emerged as an indispensable cornerstone in shaping workforce management strategies for 2024 and beyond. Among the driving forces of this evolution are Managed Service Providers (MSPs), poised to assume pivotal roles as the epicenters of total talent intelligence.
MSPs are uniquely positioned to harness the potential of total talent intelligence and, in doing so, offer enhanced value to their clients and contingent workforce management (CWM) programs. Equipped with an arsenal of capabilities including direct sourcing, services procurement, Statement of Work (SOW) management, and independent contractor administration, along with a nearly 25%-to-30% crossover for existing clients who utilize MSPs for Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO), today’s MSPs boast real-time access to rich data on the entirety of the workforce.
And, there’s an additional, critical attribute of today’s MSPs that position these solutions to make a greater push for total talent intelligence: many modern, leading Managed Service Providers have fully-integrated and self-service analytics portals that not only provide user programs with real-time data concerning contingent workforce utilization, labor market rates, talent utilization, skills gaps, etc., but also a next-generation swatch of intelligence that is pulled from myriad systems (aforementioned above) that can, yes, you guessed it…get us ever-so-closer to true total talent intelligence.
Leading MSPs, such as Magnit, Talent Solutions TAPFIN, Guidant Global, KellyOCG, AMS, HireGenics, Atrium, Randstad, and eTeam, represent the next generation of workforce management solutions that will reimagine and transform the very definition of total talent management.
As we steer towards the horizon of 2024, MSPs find themselves in a compelling juncture, standing at the precipice of the workforce management paradigm’s evolution. The time is ripe for them to grasp the essence of total talent management, and the gateway to this transformation is through the conduit of total talent intelligence.
The ultimate goal of total talent intelligence, and the true manifestation of total talent management, is the ability to respond with agility to ever-changing talent demands based on a profound understanding of the entire workforce.
MSPs are well-positioned to embody this essence and lead the charge as the linchpins of genuine total talent intelligence. By embracing this role, they become instrumental in shaping the future of workforce management, propelling organizations toward a new frontier of data-driven, agile, and highly effective talent acquisition and management. As the landscape continues to evolve, this evolution will be integral in defining the success and sustainability of organizations in the Future of Work era and beyond.
