With organizations facing a global talent shortage, the need for mentoring and developing candidates from within has grown increasingly important to ensure a diverse workforce, particularly at the senior levels. Ron Glover, vice president, diversity and workforce policy, human resources, IBM (No. 17 in the 2012 DiversityInc Top 50), highlighted these issues during DiversityInc’s Talent Development/Mentoring networking lunch. Held during a DiversityInc event in Washington, D.C., the session offered the more than 50 participants—composed of chief diversity officers and senior executives—the opportunity to discuss best practices. In this 1,743-word article, Glover shared insights into several key areas of talent development, including:
- Why diversity at the top starts with a well-planned, maintained talent pipeline
- How identifying talent early on is key to ensuring leadership is diverse and tailored for areas of expertise
- Why cross-cultural mentoring plays a vital role in preparing future leaders to move up
- How holding leaders accountable for mentoring results produces a sustainable pipeline
Glover provides real-life examples of the processes IBM has to develop talent and foster an environment of innovation, a meritocracy that starts even before people join the organization. IBM focuses on “identifying who the most talented people are with a commitment to diversity but with equal commitment to make sure that it’s not just diverse for diverse’s sake,” he said. He also gave insight into how IBM effectively uses metrics, and he detailed its “Five-Minute Drill” for identifying and selecting talent. Additionally, executives from CACI International, Deloitte (No. 8), and Kaiser Permanente (No. 3) weighed in.