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Talent Management &

Leadership
(A Managers Guide)

Talent Management A guide for managers (May12)

TABLE OF CONTENTS
1.

An Introduction to Talent Management .............................................. 3

2.

The Talent Management Annual Cycle .............................................. 5

3.

Talent Mapping & Succession Planning ............................................ 7

4.

Talent Calibration & Review............................................................. 13

5.

For More Information ....................................................................... 17

Acknowledgement
We would like to thank Nik Patten (Chief Executive) and David Young (Deputy Director of
Organisational Development) for allowing us to modify this guide and make it available for
use by organisations throughout the NHS Midlands and East, and for their continued
support and implementation of Talent Management within Peterborough and Stamford
NHS Foundation Trust and across the system.

Talent Management A guide for managers (May12)

1.

An Introduction to Talent Management

This guide is intended for all staff who conduct appraisals. Its purpose is to:
Explain what talent management is and its role in supporting a Trusts ambitions for
success
Describe how each talent management stage fits into an Organisations business planning
cycle
Describe how to use the Talent Mapping & Succession Planning tools
The following information is intended as an introduction to talent management for staff and
managers and can be used in conjunction with the NHS Midlands and East talent toolkit.
What do we mean by Talent?
Everybody has talent in some form or another i.e. a particular skill or competency that is
exceptional or above average. For example our talent are those individuals with the attributes
that will enable us to achieve our goal of being best for patients and a great place to work, either
through their immediate contribution or in the longer term by demonstrating the highest levels of
potential (INSERT YOUR OWN DEFINITION HERE)
So what is Talent Management?
Each part of the talent management process corresponds to the employment journey many of us
make from recruitment to exit interview, as can be seen from the examples below:
Recruitment (Attracting Talent) - ensuring we attract the best talent and that all new staff share
our values
Development (Developing Talent) putting in place the right learning and development
initiatives to enable individuals to achieve their maximum potential
Internal/external Job Changes (Managing Talent) performance appraisal and talent review
activities should help to identify those ready for career progression now or in the future and/or
where there are alternative roles within the organisation that are a better match for their
particular talents
Exiting (Evaluating & Retaining Talent) ensuring we offer a high quality workplace to limit our
loss of talent but assessing through exit interviews that we address any barriers to retention.
Recognising some staff will leave to realise their potential but having a good relationship so they
may become future employees again in the future
As a line manager you have a contribution to make at all four stages of this employment journey
this guide is primarily about your role in the middle 2 elements (i.e. Developing and Managing
talent)

Talent Management A guide for managers (May12)

A Systematic Approach to Talent

Management Getting Spoilt for Choice
Vision & Planning
1

Talent & Leadership Planning

3

Identify Organisational
Strategy & ensure
alignment of Talent &
Leadership Approach

Deliver Talent Management & Development

Initiatives

Towards the best

together

NHS Leadership
Competencies

DH Potential
Competencies

Assessment Centres

Interviews / Pres

Performance Review
Understand our Capacity
Requirements

Succession Planning

Recruit
Good
Talent

Talent Review

Pathways

Appraisal
360 Degree Feedback
Current
Workforce
Assessment
(Supply)

Future
Workforce
Needs
(Demand)

Pipeline Development

Understand
our Talent

Spoilt for
Choice

Manage &
Deploy our
Talent

Self Assessment

Talent Review Forum

Governance

Line Manager
Feedback

Develop
our
Talent

Discussion & PDP

Transfers
Appointment

Gap Analysis

Workforce
Plan

SCL

Coaching

Specific Role
Development

Aspiring
Directors

Generic Training

Aspirational
Planning

Networks

Graduate
Schemes

Board 360

Provider
Development

HPEP

Whole Board
Development

Who is responsible for Talent Management?

The responsibilities for ensuring talent management is a success in the organisation can be
identified as follows::
All staff - maximising the opportunities to develop and realise their potential and aspirations.
All managers- providing constructive and regular feedback to their staff about their performance
and potential and supporting their continued learning. Identifying and developing succession
plans for the key roles in their teams. Seeing talent as an organisation wide, not local response
Development Specialists commissioning, designing and/or delivering interventions that help to
identify, develop and retain talent
Senior Executives providing visible senior-level support and aligning the talent strategy with the
strategic aims of the Trust, making Talent Management and Succession Planning a standing item
at board meetings at least twice a year.
How does talent management fit into our other initiatives?
Talent management has a role to play in almost all of the key changes we are seeking to make in
the Cluster to achieve our goals and the QIPP and reform agenda.
Here are some examples:
- Patient safety is top of our priority list. We need to know that, for the key roles within the
region leading on this agenda, there is a pool of replacement talent should one of them
leave
- With an ageing population and less young people coming into the workforce we need to
be more competitive at attracting local talent. Apprenticeships are one way we are
seeking to achieve this.
- Leadership and change management are becoming increasing skill requirements within
Trusts. Currently we are often buying in our talent by recruiting external consultants.
However we are also developing people within the region so in the near future we should
be able to recruit people with the right skills and competencies from our existing
workforce
- Competition for people with high potential is likely to increase, both from within the NHS
and externally. To retain our talent we need to think more creatively about the
development opportunities we can provide individuals with.
- People who are not engaged with their employers tend to take their talents elsewhere; it
is important to develop a positive Employee Value Proposition (EVP) as part of your
integrated approach to retaining your talent.
Talent Management A guide for managers (May12)

An Employee Value Proposition can be described as a set of associations and offerings provided
by an organisation in return for the skills, capabilities and experiences an employee brings to the
organisation.
The EVP is an employee- centered approach that is aligned to existing workforce strategies and
informed by existing employees and It includes both intrinsic and extrinsic rewards
An EVP must be unique, relevant and compelling if it is to act as a key driver of talent attraction,
engagement and retention.
What is available to help you with Talent Management?
The NHS East of England Talent Management Toolkit is available to all organisations and can be
found at www.eoeleadership.nhs.uk and click on the Talent Tab. The toolkit includes
A talent map template (with potential and performance descriptors)
A Talent Plan How to guide
The Talent Essentials model
A succession plan template
The Leadership Potential model
And many other useful documents and articles

2. The Talent Management Annual Cycle

The diagram below shows how we envisage the talent management cycle could run for year 1
and, with the exception of Step 1, how it will continue to operate on an annual basis.
The aim for Year 1 is for every individual at a Band 8 position or above to be talent mapped (this
will result after a discussion between individuals and their line managers as part of the annual
appraisal prcess) and, if applicable, identified as a potential successor on one or more
succession plans. At the same time to identify any key roles where there are no incumbents, or
an absence of potential successors, and give them a RAG rating (see the later section on
succession planning for details)
A key role is defined as:
Pivotal to the success of the organisation/service provision
A hard to fill position, with only a few posts in the Trust
A newly-designed post, whose uniqueness means there is no previous recruitment
history.
From Year 2, once talent maps have been used for a full 12 months for all appraisals the aim will
be to roll out the process to staff below band 8.

Talent Management A guide for managers (May12)

Steps 2-5 are now covered in the following sections.

Activity

Year 1

Month 1
Wk 1 Wk 2 Wk 3 Wk 4

Month 2
Wk 1 Wk 2 Wk 3 Wk 4

Months 3-4
May

June

Months 5-12
-

July -Dec

Step 1: Publication of Guide

for Managers & Revised Tools
Step 2: Talent Mapping
& Succession Planning

Step 3: Talent Calibration &

Review

Step 4: Data Collection

Step 5: Data Analysis

Complete
Dashboard

Incorporation of Talent Mapping

Within Appraisal
Implement Talent &
Leadership priorities-

Talent Management A guide for managers (May12)

3. Talent Mapping & Succession Planning

Using the Talent Map
The diagram below shows the Talent Map. This assesses an individual against two clear and
distinct measures:
Performance from Partially to Exceeds expectations and denoted by the vertical position on
the map.
Potential from Sometimes through to Always demonstrates leadership behaviours and
determines their position horizontally

Talent Management A guide for managers (May12)

Performance looks at today, whilst potential is about spotting the qualities an individual has
now that make it likely they will succeed in the future. It is tempting to think that the two are
interchangeable but in fact research indicates that only 29% of high performers are high
potential, meaning that performance and potential are very different.
One of the key factors that must be taken into consideration when assessing potential is Ability
do they have the mental agility, interpersonal or technical skills to progress to a more senior
level? Current high performance may provide some indication of this (though progression into a
more senior level may require a different skill set). However there are two other critical factors:
Engagement the extent to people value and believe in their organisation, willingness to go
above and beyond the call of duty and their employees level of desire to stay
Aspiration the extent to which they desire recognition, influence, financial rewards or work-life
balance
Step 1 Assessing Performance
During the appraisal process this should be completed once performance against objectives and
the KSF outline for the job have been achieved.
At this point it is good practice to invite appraisees to self-assess; assuming you have set
SMART objectives and provided appropriate feedback then it should be straightforward for them
to reach the correct conclusion as to which level they fit. It is important that we are confident
these results are sustainable by reviewing the way they have achieved their objectives (the how)
as well as what they achieved; this can be done through looking at the KSF outline or leadership
potential indicators and documenting the skills and behaviours they have used.

Exceptional
Outstanding performance
against objectives and
behaviours required at level

Exceeds Expectations
Regularly delivers more than
required against objectives and
behaviours required at level

Effective
Meets the expectations for
performance against objectives
and behaviours required at level

Marginal
Below met expectations against
performance objectives and
behaviours required at level

There are some pitfalls to avoid when assessing performance, all of which could distort our view
of their contribution; here are some of the most common:
Halo/Horns effect this occurs when our overall assessment of achievement is influenced by
just one quality. This quality could be positive (halo) or negative (horns) and means that we
disregard or discount other skills or attributes that they may possess

Talent Management A guide for managers (May12)

Recency this is when we give too much weight (again, positively or negatively) to a recent
significant event without placing it in the context of the years performance
Mini-me We tend to like and respond most favourably to people who we perceive to be similar
to us. This can translate into a tendency to assess their performance more favourably than it is
warranted.
Stereotypes these are a set of characteristics that we associate with people from certain
groups (e.g. estate agents, consultants, politicians). We all have them and they help us to make
sense of the world around us. However many of these characteristics have very negative or
positive associations. In an appraisal situation they can result in a bias, often unconscious,
against appraisees that appear to conform to our stereotype.
For all the above tendencies training, online testing and personal reflection can help to increase
your self-awareness as to which one(s) you are susceptible to.
However the most critical element of all is the need for consistent feedback and discussion with
the appraisee throughout the year, during both formal and informal meetings about progress. A
comprehensive record of examples to support your assessment, previously discussed in a timely
way, is the best way to ensure an accurate and fair result.
Step 2 Assessing Potential
By its very nature, there is more challenge in assessing someones potential with precision. It is
even more important to get the input of the appraisee in determining which column they fall into
because, as previously mentioned, identifying:
1. Ambition are they actively seeking a more challenging role? (aspiration)
2. Commitment do they identify with the Trusts values and goals (engagement)
3. Intention to Stay do they believe that staying with the Trust is in their self-interest?
These are crucial elements in this process.
Some useful approaches that can explore these areas are:
Describe to me a typical day at work for you in 2-3 years time

How well is the Trust living up to its values?

Where do you feel you contribute most to what the Trust is trying to achieve?

What parts of your role provide you with most pleasure/pain?

On a scale of 1-10 how likely are you to still be with the Trust in [select a number] years
time? (Then as a follow up: what would increase it to 8 or 9?)

The other key component is Ability do they have the required technical and interpersonal
skills, as well as the inherent mental and emotional intelligence, to be successful in a more senior
position?
To help answer this question it is useful to revisit appraisees KSF outline or Leadership potential
indicators instead of just comparing their individual outline against their current job role, it can
also be matched against other positions that are of interest to them.

Talent Management A guide for managers (May12)

RETAINING TALENT
Provides high level of
expertise at current
level and critical to
retain. Limited
potential for
progression within 3-5
years or shows no
motivation / aspiration
to want to progress
IMPROVEMENT
REQUIRED
To other quadrant (or
exit strategy required)

EMERGING
TALENT
Shows potential &
motivation to
develop
at current level in
some respects.
Shows future
promise and
expected to
progress within 35 years

DEVELOPING
TALENT
Demonstrates the
potential &
motivation to
develop at current
level& to progress
within 1-3 years

READY NOW
Demonstrates the
Potential,
motivation
& experience to
perform at next
level.
In next <12 months,
should focus on
developing
leadership
behaviours
at next level

The final position on the Talent Map can help to determine the personal development plan that
an appraisee may need to construct. For example:
Well placed What areas of expertise can develop further to increase my proficiency in my
current position?
Lateral Move What secondment opportunities are there that might give the individual valuable
experience for their next job role?
Once you have agreed with the appraisee a provisional position on the talent map however it is
important that you stress that final confirmation may be dependent on completion of the talent
calibration process (see next section)
Points to Consider
1. All individuals should be aware of their position on the talent map but not their colleagues;
any collated maps should therefore be treated confidentially
2. All staff in their current position for less than 6 months should be placed in New to Level
3. Any staff subject to formal poor performance management should be placed in
Improvement Required
4. Many (if not most) of appraisees will be happy in their current role i.e. Retaining Talent.
This is both usual and desirable; such individuals provide the vital stability and continuity
that keep the Trust going. Addressing their needs and concerns is as important as those
of our high potential staff they should not feel under pressure to invent any ambitions for
career progression they do not possess
5. Peoples position on the Talent map can change in both dimensions according to
circumstances therefore it is important not to use assumptive language (so, same as
last year then?) to ensure they feel comfortable to reveal new insights and needs

Talent Management A guide for managers (May12)

10

The revised EoE Potential Model (1/5)

Potential model

Engages and inspires

others
Demonstrates
political astuteness
Builds effective
networks
Delivers
collaboratively

Influencing

Personal
agility

Shows good self

management
Demonstrates
personal drive and
motivation
Expresses desire to
learn
Shows resilience

Potential

Shapes the future of

the region
Engages in broad
scanning
Lives the NHS
values
Develops
capabilities

Strategic
understanding

Results
orientation

Demonstrates action
orientation
Motivates and
empowers others
Shows good
analysis and
problem solving

| 1

Using the Succession Plan

For all managerial and senior clinical and business critical roles a succession plan will also need
to be completed once a year an example is shown below. There are a number of steps to this
process:
Role

Incumbent

Emergency
Cover

Director,
Obsessive
Entertainment

S. Cowell

C. Cole

Now (0-1)

Soon (1-2)

Later (2+)

Risk

Comments

P. Kay

Amber

Succession
cover light, but
incumbent not
likely to leave in
short-medium
term

1. Enter the name of a business critical role that reports into you.
2. Record the name of the current job holders (incumbent)
3. Identify the person(s) who could provide Emergency Cover.

Talent Management A guide for managers (May12)

11

4. Place all potential and relevant successors from your team in the appropriate column,
using the data from your Talent Map. Please note that the timescales used for each do
not correspond exactly, but there should be consistency between the two, for example:
Ready Now successors - Now column
Developing Talent Soon (possibly Later) column
Emerging Talent- Later column
There should be no Retaining Talent successors (though they may be Emergency
Cover)
5. Add any other individuals from other departments or business units who you feel could be
potential successors
6. Give a RAG (Red, Amber, Green) risk rating to each succession plan. Your assessment
should take into consideration:
Number of potential successors at each stage
Quality and quantity of emergency cover
Likelihood of the incumbents moving on in the near future (i.e. where are each of
them on their talent map)
Degree of difficulty in recruiting externally if required
Level of impact a vacancy in this position will have on the ability to deliver services
7. Step 7 Add brief comments in the last column that summarise the position and justify
the RAG rating you have arrived at.
8. Repeat the process for any other business critical positions that you manage
As with Talent Maps it is important that the process is as transparent as possible and
individuals know about any succession plans they have been placed on. However it is also
important to emphasise to staff that this is not an action plan recruitment into any role in the
organisation will remain a competitive and fair process, with no preferential treatment for
people identified as high potential and on succession plans

Talent Management A guide for managers (May12)

12

4. Talent Calibration & Review

Even with well designed tools and clear guidelines, any assessment process always has an
element of subjectivity about it. For example, one manager may view any of his direct reports
with more than 5 years experience in their jobs as being automatically belonging in the Ready
Now column, whereas a colleague in the same department may have a perfectionist streak so
that no-one can ever really be at this stage. The Talent calibration process is designed to iron out
inconsistencies in assessing potential so that the Trust has as accurate a picture as possible.
At a calibration meeting managers get together with their peers, either from the same department
or business unit (depending on seniority) to present the talent maps for those members of the
team that report directly to them. For those positions where the job holders report into a director,
general manager or clinical lead the calibration will take place across the whole Trust; lower
banded positions will take place across individual departments/business units.
Essentially the purpose of the session is to:
Review the distribution of talent within a particular role (e.g. General Manager, Lead Nurse,
Ward Managers) as a whole and/or by department (e.g. deputy sisters in Emergency &
Critical Care)
Consider the implications of these findings and appropriate actions in response
Describe the rationale for individual positions on Talent Maps and review initial assessments
with observation and feedback from peer colleagues,
Record any ideas identified for developing the talent of specific individuals
In reviewing the position of an individual on the Talent Map the following questions (not
exhaustive) may be useful to prompt discussion, if applicable:
1) What are the key successes that have determined an assessment of high performance
i.e. top row of the Talent Map
2) What are the observed behaviours, traits and/or actions that have determined an
assessment of potential beyond current position
3) Have the other 2 key elements of potential (aspiration and level of engagement) been
considered in addition to projected performance when assessing which potential column
an individual belongs?
4) Has an individual been in post long enough to justify any other place on the Talent Map
other than new to level?
Following discussion a manager may change the position of an individual on the talent map;
therefore it is important during the appraisal that the appraisee understands that any initial
position agreed at is provisional subject to the calibration process.
Because appraisals take place throughout the year, it is anticipated that calibration will take place
bi-annually to review appraisees in each half

Talent Management A guide for managers (May12)

13

5. Data Collection & Analysis

Both the talent maps and succession plans are seeking to answer the same question in different
ways how Spoilt for Choice are we in looking at our future talent? This section describes
how they begin to answer this question, as well as other talent measures we look at.
Talent Maps
Once the calibration has been completed, then the talent maps for individuals can be collated
into one final version (see diagram below). For key roles, as per the example, individuals may
appear on their departmental senior managers talent map and on a Trust wide one for their
position
Exceeds expectations
Outstanding
performance against
objectives and
behaviours required
at level

JB

Meets expectations

Meets the
expectations for
performance against
objectives and
behaviours required
at level
Partially met
expectations
Below meets
expectations against
performance
objectives and
behaviours required
at level
Sometimes demonstrates

Almost always demonstrates

Always demonstrates

Shows limited potential to

develop at current level
within three to five years
or shows no motivation/
aspiration to want to
progress

Demonstrates the potential

and motivation to develop at
current level and to progress
within one to three years

Demonstrates the
potential, motivation
and experience to
perform at next level. In
next <12 months, should
focus on developing
leadership behaviours at
next level

After Calibration

Individual Talent Map e.g. J Bloggs

Exceeds expectations
Outstanding
performance against
objectives and
behaviours required
at level

JB
CS

Meets expectations

Meets the
expectations for
performance against
objectives and
behaviours required
at level
Partially met
expectations
Below meets
expectations against
performance
objectives and
behaviours required
at level

SL
NP

AJ

Sometimes demonstrates

Almost always demonstrates

Always demonstrates

Shows limited potential to

develop at current level
within three to five years
or shows no motivation/
aspiration to want to
progress

Demonstrates the potential

and motivation to develop at
current level and to progress
within one to three years

Demonstrates the
potential, motivation
and experience to
perform at next level. In
next <12 months, should
focus on developing
leadership behaviours at
next level

CBU Senior Managers

Exceeds expectations
Outstanding
performance against
objectives and
behaviours required
at level

MAT
EW

Meets expectations

Meets the
expectations for
performance against
objectives and
behaviours required
at level

CB
DP

Partially met
expectations
Below meets
expectations against
performance
objectives and
behaviours required
at level
Sometimes demonstrates

Almost always demonstrates

Always demonstrates

Shows limited potential to

develop at current level
within three to five years
or shows no motivation/
aspiration to want to
progress

Demonstrates the potential

and motivation to develop at
current level and to progress
within one to three years

Demonstrates the
potential, motivation
and experience to
perform at next level. In
next <12 months, should
focus on developing
leadership behaviours at
next level

Talent Management A guide for managers (May12)

14

Trust Matron Talent Map

The final collated versions are used to update the Trusts Talent & Leadership Plan. An example
is shown below:
Next Step Director Talent Pool

19 Individuals

2 individuals
are ready now
to step up at
least 1 Level

We can then see the percentage of individuals in each category, which gives us an indication of
the depth of our talent pool and identifies issues to be addressed e.g. How likely will we have to
recruit externally? What additional development do we need to put in place to help increase
potential (e.g. Further Growth, Lateral Move), or improve performance (Some Concern, to Well
Placed), or can both be addressed with the right secondment or project (ET2 to DT1)
Going forward, taking year 1 as your base line you can record comparative movements to assess
whether the Talent pools are getting deeper e.g. Movement year on year between different
categories.
It is also useful to record the number of internal promotions and seeing the proportion of
successful applicants who were classified as Ready Now this will enable you to revise the
calibration process.

Talent Management A guide for managers (May12)

15

Succession Plans
As with talent maps, you can collate the information from individual succession plans to assess
the overall level of risk that you have for individual departments the risk being that of having no
successors for a key role if the current job holder was unable to continue. The percentage of
roles at Red, Amber or Green can then be shown in simple pie-chart form an example is shown
below:

RAG Rating Succession Key RolesAll Trust

GREEN
36%

RED
30%

AMBER
34%

We can also look at the percentage of coverage for all key roles, by CBU, for different timescales
identified on the succession plan (see below). These percentages relate to positions on the
succession plan template where at least one successor is identified i.e. it does not take account
of situations where there is more than one potential successor for a given timescale
Now (0-1 Year)

Surgery
Cancer
Musculoskeletal
Family & PH
Corporate
Clinical Services
ECC
Med - LTC
0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

Coverage Percentage

Talent Management A guide for managers (May12)

16

Other Measures
There are a number of other ways in which you can measure the success of your talent
management. These are collectively known nationally as the 4 principles from Spoilt for Choice
are listed below, along with the key measures:

5. For More Information

The NHS East of England website www.eoeleadership.nhs.uk and click on the talent tab to
access the:
Talent toolkit
Regional Talent Plan
Useful documents/evidence for Talent Management
Links to leadership development programmes and support such as Coaching and
Leadership Qualities
360 Feedback
Or contact:
Chris Birbeck
Deputy Head of Leadership and Organisational Development
Office: 01223 597726
Chris.birbeck@eoe.nhs.uk

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