Talent Management and the Future of Work

William R. Kerr; Gorick  Ng

Technical Note | HBS Case Collection | February 2020

Talent Management and the Future of Work

Abstract

The nature of work is changing—and it is changing rapidly. Few days go by without industry giants such as Amazon and AT&T announcing plans to invest billions of dollars towards retraining nearly half of their respective workforces for jobs of the future. What changes lurking around the corner are Amazon and AT&T seeing? What tools do managers have to confront the accelerating change? How should talent management and workplace design evolve for the new landscape? This note summarizes the key drivers of change and offers a framework for managers to apply to their businesses.

Keywords: human resource management; human capital development; Human Resource Practices; Talent; talent acquisition; talent development; talent development and retention; talent management; talent retention; labor flows; labor management; labor market; strategy development; Strategy management; strategy execution; strategy and execution; strategic change; Transformations; organization; organization alignment; organization design; organizational adaptation; organizational effectiveness; management challenges; management of business and political risk; change leadership; future of work; future; Skills Gap; Skills Development; skills; offshoring and outsourcing; investment; capital allocation; work; work culture; Work force management; work/life balance; work/family balance; work-family boundary management; workers; worker productivity; worker performance; work engagement; work environment; work environments; productivity; organization culture; soft skills; technology management; technological change; Technological Change: Choices and Consequences; technology diffusion; disruptive technology; global business; global; workplace; Workplace context; workplace culture; workplace wellness; collaboration; Competencies; Productivity gains; digital; digital transformation; digital transition; competitive dynamics; competitiveness; competitive strategy; Data Analytics; data; Data Management; data strategy; data protection; aging society; diversity; Diversity Management; millennials; Communication complexity; communication technologies; international business; work sharing; Global Competitiveness; Global corporate cultures; intellectual property; intellectual property management; Intellectual Property Protection; intellectual capital and property issues; globalization; globalization of supply chain; inequality; recruiting; hiring; Hiring of employees; training; Job Cuts and Outsourcing; job performance; job search; job design; Job satisfaction; Jobs; employee engagement; employee attitude; employee benefits; Employee compensation; employee fairness; employee relationship management; Employee Retention; employee selection; employee motivation; employee feedback; employee coordination; Employee Performance Management; employee socialization; process improvement; application performance management; stigma; institutional change; candidates; digital enterprise; cultural adaptation; cultural change; cultural diversity; cultural context; cultural strategies; cultural psychology; cultural reform; Performance; Performance Effectiveness; performance management; Performance Evaluation; performance appraisal; performance feedback; performance measurement; performance metrics; performance measures; Performance Efficiency; efficiency; performance analysis; performance appraisals; Performance improvement; automation; artificial intelligence; technology companies; Managerial Processes; skilled migration; Assessment; Human Resources; Management; Human Capital; Talent and Talent Management; Retention; Demographics; Labor; Strategy; Change; Change Management; Transformation; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Culture; Working Conditions; Technology; Technology Adoption; Disruption; Economy; Competition; Globalization;

Language: English

Format: Print

10 pages

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Citation:

Kerr, William R., and Gorick Ng. "Talent Management and the Future of Work." Harvard Business School Technical Note 820-084, February 2020.

Case | HBS Case Collection | July 2019 (Revised May 2020)

AT&T, Retraining, and the Workforce of Tomorrow

William R. Kerr, Joseph B. Fuller and Carl Kreitzberg

By the late 2000s, rapid changes in the telecommunications industry forced AT&T’s management team to take on a task that CEO Randall Stephenson called the “biggest logistical challenge” they had ever seen: retraining 100,000 workers by 2020. In 2012, internal company analyses found that AT&T’s workforce would lack the skills it needed to fulfill emerging job requirements. AT&T responded by creating “Workforce 2020,” a company-wide initiative that sought to address potential skill shortfalls. The initiative aimed to transform AT&T’s workforce by implementing multiple changes, such as redesigning job roles, developing new educational curricula with Udacity, and incentivizing employees to retrain themselves for high-demand careers. Some gave high praise to the “Workforce 2020” model, going so far as to call it a new “social contract” between employers and employees. Others worried that the new program was systematically disadvantaging specific groups of workers. In 2018, AT&T rebranded Workforce 2020 to “Future Ready,” signaling the company’s commitment to retraining its workforce beyond 2020.

Keywords: AT＆T; workforce; skills; future of work; telecommunications; Unions; technological change; layoffs; MOOCS; Strategic Planning; Employees; Training; Competency and Skills; Labor; Learning; Labor Unions; Technology Adoption; Talent and Talent Management; Telecommunications Industry; Communications Industry; United States;

Citation:

Kerr, William R., Joseph B. Fuller, and Carl Kreitzberg. "AT&T, Retraining, and the Workforce of Tomorrow." Harvard Business School Case 820-017, July 2019. (Revised May 2020.) View Details

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Talent is a critical resource for today’s knowledge economy. The United States has benefited substantially from high-skilled migration since the 1970s, especially with respect to innovation and entrepreneurship. This chapter reviews data on these immigrant contributions, and it discusses the important roles played by universities and firms under the American system. The chapter concludes with ways that U.S. immigration policy could be enhanced, which will become more important as other nations become more competitive for global talent.

Immigrants account for about a quarter of U.S. invention and entrepreneurship despite a policy environment that is not well suited for these purposes. This chapter reviews the U.S. immigration policy environment that governs how skilled migrants move to America for employment-based purposes. We discuss points of strain in the current system and potential policy reforms that would likely increase the rate of innovation and the number of startups due to immigrants in the country. Key areas include adjustments to the allocation of permanent residency visas, adjustments to the H-1B visa program, and the creation of an immigrant startup visa.

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Talent Management and the Future of Work

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