Boards need to pay heed to talent management too

MOST companies say people are their most important asset. But I've seen that few boards have human capital development as a regular item on their agendas.

Typically, the board (and, often, only the remuneration committee) receives tabular summaries of personnel data such as total headcount, cost per head count, training hours and staff turnover. The only time the board might touch on talent and career management is when an executive director resigns, and when the time for annual increments and bonuses rolls around.

As it is, companies in Asia, including Singapore, are facing a scarcity of leadership talent. According to a Right Management 2014 survey, only 11 per cent of companies have been successful in identifying and developing leadership talent. Part of this is due to challenges in the business environment and organisations focusing on delivering short-term goals, thus postponing or ignoring the need to examine the long-term "talent pipeline".