The talent deal and journey : Understanding how employees respond to talent identification over time

Purpose – An organisation’s management of talent is central to its opportunity to benefit from human capital (HC). Closer examination of the impact of strategic talent management (STM) on the psychological contract (PC) and employee organisation relationship of talented employees is imperative if STM is to achieve intended organisational performance outcomes. Conceptualising the talented-employee perception of exchange as the “talent deal” and experience of STM over time as the “talent journey”, an empirical research model is introduced. The paper aims to discuss these issue. Design/methodology/approach – The model examines employee perceptions of STM, locating the employee response to STM within the wider SHRM-performance linkage. Findings – The research model theorises the PC of talented employees is modified by talent identification and STM is experienced through a series of significant career events. Research limitations/implications – Further developing theory within the emerging field of STM, the paper extends STM, SHRM and organisational behaviour literatures by considering the employee’s psychological response to STM. Empirical study considerations are presented. Practical implications – The “talent deal” and “talent journey” illustrate the employee experience of STM, drawing management attention to the consequences of talent identification including potential risk of altered expectations. Originality/value – Considering the employee centrally in STM, the model theorises the impact of STM on the talented employee’s PC and their relationship. Introducing the talent deal and talent journey provides a lens to examine the attitudes of talented employees relative to the broader workforce. The model frames future multi-level research of the association between the “Talent Deal” and performance outcomes.