Talent: Making People Your Competitive Advantage

by Edward E. Lawler III, Dave Ulrich (Foreword by)

Overview

The source of competitive advantage has shifted in many organizations from reliability to innovation and flexibility. But what does it take for an organization that innovates to then manage effectively? In this follow-up to Built to Change, Ed Lawler argues that it is a combination of the right structure and the right people. First, organizations must decide what structure they are: are you a high-involvement organization that has products and services that require a high level of coordination and cooperation among employees? Or do you have a more global competitor structure in which you are constantly bringing in new talent and technological expertise? Are you a mixture of both? Lawler outlines the unique human capital strategy for each approach, shows what it looks like in action, and provides the foundation and tools for creating competitive and innovative organizations.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781118047620
Publisher:	Wiley
Publication date:	12/23/2010
Sold by:	JOHN WILEY & SONS
Format:	eBook
Pages:	304
Sales rank:	204,390
File size:	759 KB

About the Author

Edward E. Lawler III is director of the Center for Effective Organizations at the University of Southern California (USC) and distinguished professor in the USC Marshall School of Business. Named one of the country's leading management experts by BusinessWeek magazine, Lawler is the recipient of the top career achievement awards given by SHRM, ASTD, WorldatWork, and the Academy of Management. He is the author or coauthor of more than forty books, including The New American Workplace, HR Business Process Outsourcing, Treat People Right!, From the Ground Up, Rewarding Excellence, and most recently, Built to Change. His writings have appeared in the Harvard Business Review, Fortune, the Wall Street Journal, USA Today, and the Financial Times, as well as many academic journals.

Table of Contents

Foreword vii 
Dave Ulrich

Preface xv

1 Talent Matters 1

2 Making the Right Management Choice 14

3 Designing Organizations 36

4 Managing Talent 63

5 Managing Performance 99

6 Information and Decision Making 126

7 Reinventing HR 151

8 Governing Corporations 175

9 Leading 196

10 Managing Change 220

 Epilogue 237

 Notes 243

 References 255

 The Author 261

 Index 263

Editorial Reviews

Voted "Best Book of 2008" in Human Capital, Strategy + Business "Some boards do have committees on human resources, but they typically focus on CEO and executive compensation and perhaps succession planning at the executive level, not on the overall talent strategy and effectiveness of the organization...What is needed is a human capital committee that addresses succession planning for senior management positions and the evaluation of the CEO and the top management team."—as excerpted from TALENT by Edward E. Lawler, III in Directors & Boards

"There was one chapter in Talent that I found to be really new and interesting. That was the chapter about corporate boards and talent management. Often when we think about boards of directors we think about a room of former CEOs and finance guys who go over number and compliance issues. That's pretty much what Lawler has found in his research as well. But if a company wants to really use its people as its competitive advantage, then these boards of directors have to be informed on the talent management issues within the company. Not only that, but at least some of these board members should have some HR expertise—which according to Lawler's research, is a pretty rare occurrence."—Workforce Management

"In his book—for those who wish to proceed with HC-centricity—Lawler describes the steps involved in building talent-based organizations. Through generous case studies of companies from Whole Foods to BMW to Siebel Systems, Lawler outlines ways of achieving HC-centric management through approaches he labels 'high involvement' or 'global competitor."—HR Magazine

"Lawler presents visionary information and examples that any organization can take pieces from. As a whole, Talent is a thought-provoking read. More importantly it is a practical book. Anytime the reader starts to say to him or herself "yeah right, that would never work" Lawler responds with an acknowledgment of the practicalities and support for optimism. If Lawler’s prediction that more companies will turn towards HC-centric organizations then it would be wise to read this book now." —The Employment File, 6/10/2008

"A lot of people know a little about Talent. Ed Lawler knows a lot! In fact, he may know more about this topic than anyone I know!"

"There is no better person to provide advice on Talent than Ed Lawler!"

"The world’s authority on HR systems – he shows you how to change the people equation in your company!" – Marshall Goldsmith is the New York Times best selling author of What Got You Here Won’t Get You There – the Harold Longman Award Best Business Book of 2007.

From the Publisher