In the war for talent: just who is worthy of development? Talent development in organizations

In this chapter we explore talent development as a critical pillar of the firm’s overall talent management strategy. We position talent development as an inclusive process of developing all organisational talent that works synergistically with talent acquisition and retention to enhance employee and organisational outcomes. We specifically explode current debates within talent development including its contribution to knowledge management, the types of development strategies that organisations can use, the significance of generational differences for talent development, the role of cross-cultural factors and the use of high potential development programmes. We conclude the chapter by outlining key research gaps in the talent development literature and offer practical insights on how best organizations can utilize a much broader source of potential firm talent through inclusive, talent development strategies to address individual career needs and strengths development and organisational performance outcomes.