Journal of Sport and Kinetic Movement Vol. I, No. 312018 [622591]

Journal of Sport and Kinetic Movement Vol. I, No. 31/2018

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TALENT MANAGEMENT IN SPORT ORGAN IZATIONS

Mihai Constantin Răzvan BARBU, Dragoș Laurențiu DIACONESCU
University of Craiova, Faculty of Physical Education and Sport , Craiova
email: [anonimizat]

Abstract : Succession and talent management approach from sports organizations should be shaped by its
strategic goals, the context in which it can be find, and human resources requirements. We will present the
six steps that provide a work schedule to design and implement succession in management: a)
planning/extending the process, b) providing strategic integration, c) assess the current situation, d)
identifying and assessing gifted individua ls e) implementation: planning and undertaking development, f)
evaluation.
In the starting phase, the organization must define a business case for the succession in management. The
second step should be considered in the demograph ic light of the organizati on and implications of the
demographic change upon the application of candidat: [anonimizat], by
estimating the current state of play, it is performed a risk assessment of possible departur es from the existing
alrea dy critical roles. The fourth step is to identify and evaluate the potential. It incorporates the
identification of critical roles in the organization and the development of a clear understanding of the
capabilities required for e ffectiveness in those role s. The fifth step is the implementation and this involves
planning and implementing the program. The last step is evaluation. For the organization, assessing its
results could be determined in the following terms: if organizationa l risk decreased, reduced or not.
Keywords : management, sport, organization .

Introduction
Approaching succession and talent in
management by sports organizations should be
shaped by its strategic goals, the context in which
it can be found, and by the human resources
requirement s. While each organization will have
different requirements within the policies and
processes of succession and talent in management
there are a few basic components in order to
develop an approp riate process. The explanation
for any scheme of succession a nd management
talent begins with the executive director and refers
to the managers of all levels, without their support
planning clearly having no success. The six steps
presented and then outlin ed in detail, provide an
outline of work to design and implem ent a
succession in management: a) planning/extending
the process, b) providing strategic integration, c)
assess the current situation, d) identifying and
assessing gifted individuals e) implemen tation:
planning and undertaking development, f)
evaluation.
The process of talent management
The first step is planning the process. In this
starting phase, the organization must define a
business case for the succession in management.
The reasons for emp loyment within succession
and talent in management should be clearly
outlined and the benefit brought to the
organization should be assessed in relation to the strategic goals of the organization. The other
critical element is the confidence that the proce ss
will be supported by the senior managers and also
supporte d by the lower levels.
A developing research demonstrates the
importance of the executive support [3,4].
Ensuring that the process is transparent even from
the outset is vital. If the transparenc y of the
process is important, it is also critical that
perso nal details be kept confidential. Feedback
systems in terms of staff should be introduced in
the process and developing a communication
strategy in order to inform people about the
process is als o recommended, as well as providing
specific information to e mployees.
The approach chosen should focus on strategic
development of capabilities, which is why
measuring results over time will be required.
Planning scheme of human resources can be used
to identify critical roles in the success of the
organization and those that are likely to become
critical in medium to long term. This sends us to
the second step – the ensuring of policy
integration. This integration should be considered
in the demographic l ight of the organization and
implications of the demographic change upon the
application of candidates for critical
organizational roles. Along with the human
resource planning process, the process of
succession and talent in management should be

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integrate d along with the training and
development plan and performanc e management
system. For example Sports Center managers who
will be involved in training the staff may need
training in order to develop their talent as a
trainer, thus they can lead effectively. This
training should be integrated into the role of the
job and build around it strategic imperatives of the
organization.
This step, ensuring the strategic integration,
implies also the identification of the distinct
capacities that group leaders have, c apacity that
could provide a basis through which the
organiza tion is more efficient than its competitors,
now and in the future. This will cater for future
requirements of the organization, critical success
factors, values, strategies and expected challeng es.
For example, answering questions coming from
the media an d producing television or radio
interviews, may be a minor component of the
obligations of a job as chief executive today; but
if the sports organization’s goal is only to launch a
new style of c ompetition, trainings realized on this
subject, for the execu tive director and a small
team of reporters, this could strategically improve
the image of the organization through the
capitalization of the increased potential due to
exposure in the media. It is important for sport
organizations to have a strong employe r brand to
attract the best candidates [2].
Initially, the process of succession and talent in
management should be told at least one or two
levels below the target roles of building the
require d capacity and offering profoundness. By
the third step, by e stimating the current state of
play, it is performed a risk assessment of possible
departures from the existing already critical roles.
This should draw, or sketch a demographic
analysis of the s cheme that starts from the
working scheme of the human resour ces and
designs future requirements in critical roles,
taking into account internal and external factors
and identifying the most pessimistic scenarios.
Starting from this, the organization can d etermine
the extent of any position on short term by
designin g requirements, internal mobility and
deleting into the next 3 -5 years. For example,
most western countries are facing an old, aged
working force, which means a critical
consideration for many sp orts organizations; in
the next 10 years, half of the directo rs and senior
managers will retire. Despite numerous warnings
about the impact of an aged working force, a
recent survey of 578 companies revealed that
more than one quarter of the business peopl e of the USA are not ready yet for a major change in
what reg ards the working force of the country
considering that a record number of elderly
workers retire from the service.
Any vacancies identified between the current
capabilities for the key roles and future
requirements could be addressed through relevant
strategies of succession and talent in management
including the development of internal capacity,
external recruitment in order to aim immediately
the particular vacancies, or programs for
recruiting specialists. The fourth step is to identify
and evaluate the potential. It incorporates the
identification of critical roles in the organization
and the development of a clear understanding of
the capabilities required for effectiveness in those
roles. Th ese will include positions that exert a
critical influence ov er the activities of the
organization. The essential skills and competences
identified are then drawn using powerful,
important, and objective criteria [6].
These criteria are also used to identi fy and
determine the source of high performance and
high pote ntial candidates. The organization will
then define what it means being talented or with a
high potential, both within the organization and in
the context of critical organizational roles. For
example, entrepreneurial skills, together with the
initiative a nd attributes of a player within the team
may be necessary to establish high performance in
a sales and marketing role within a professional
franchise in sports. As part of this process, the
organization identifies people who might work
well in target role s. The values of the organization
and the management components required should
also be considered with each individual
performance and ability to learn. It is important to
understand strengths, the potential of the
identified and how these individuals can meet
future requirements. It is vital to have accurate,
precise identification and evaluation.
Subjectivity can be minimized by using multiple
methods that are comprehensive and evidences
based on the evaluation of potential and by
identifying employees w ho could handle the
specified roles [7].
A good start to review performance, potential and
requirements of the development is the existence
of management performance data including the
following: biographical data; current performance;
behavior observation ; total feedback and all
formal estimate of the results; interviews for
determining career preferences; assessment of the
possibility to remain in the organization;
"behavior" interviews used to determine past

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performance in challenging situations; feedbac k
from senior executives and relative evaluation of
certain characteristics [10].
In most performance management systems the
supervisor assesses the performance of the staff.
In any case, success ion and talent do not always
occur if immediate supervisors. The assessment
can be better performed by an external or a "third
party" or within the higher/senior levels of the
organization. The organization may also consider
awarding individuals with oppor tunities of self –
appointing and to express an interest in see ing
certain roles based on preferences and personal
objectives. A meeting for reviewing the
higher/senior staff should be held in order to
discuss individual reports, to agree on the list of
"potential", and to establish the final list. The
documentation f or this process should include
information about each employee, the potential,
the level of performance, the career interests, the
goals and the retention risk of each.
Any kind of internal capac ity problems will
become apparent at this stage through the p ossible
short estimates and through the surplus of possible
candidates. The analysis should not be done in
isolation and it should also outline the analysis of
the human resources used in human r esources
planning and it may include an assessment of the
market factors regarding the availability of
external skills and an assessment of the place
where development resources should be focused.
The fifth step is the implementation and this
involves plan ning and implementing the program.
The plan will outline the types of roles or
experiences that could be offered as opportunities
of rapid development, in correlation with future
needs of the organization [1].
Larger organizations may want to assign
particular "packages" of tasks such as
"development roles" and to u se these as
development tasks for talented individuals. This
step focuses on the development of the capacities
required for each individual through a program for
learning experiences, program that has
performance objectives. The development plan
should clo se any vacancy and/or strong existing
skills; competencies and goals should be aligned
with the organization's strategic plan. The
development of opp ortunities could include a
target task of the job, managing a project, a formal
training program, or an ext ernal activity.
Development can be accelerated in order to ensure
an application of the staff suitable for the future
applications of the role, and/o r undertaking, as
part of the organization’s working scheme, of management performances. Development plans
incorporate factors such as individual capacity
requirements, anticipating the challenges of the
role, organizational required knowledge, and
individ ual items [5].
Development plans usually include a plan that
assigns/offers the individual the following: j ob
rotation, special tasks and involvement; exposing
a strategic agenda and the higher levels of the
organization; strategies for self -development;
access to high -level mentors [8,9].
It is important that the opportunities for the two
methods of feedback a nd the regular review be
built into the process of succession and talent in
management. The organization should outline
how often the revisions occur and should also
follow development plans, noting that the reward
structures are aligned with the program o f
undertaking development goals or targets.
However, eventually people are responsible for
developing their careers and are ready to face
development goals and winning, the
demonstration of new capacities. The individual
must assume primary responsibility in order to
face the targets under development and in order to
maintain the reality of their performance. The last
step is to assess, although it sho uld be borne in
mind that assessment as a process should be
continuous. The organization should set periods to
implement and evaluate the approach and its
effects. For the organization, assessing its results
could be established in the following terms: if the
organizational risk was reduced, it reduced or not.
In respect of the individual, the evaluation could
include self -assessment on the state of the
capacity and changes demonstrated in
performance and behaviour at the workplace. The
total process of suc cession and talent in
management should be monitored. This may
include periodic assessment of the progress within
the individual development plans, the degree of
involvement of the current leaders or senior and
the share of internal and external appointmen ts.
Conclusions
In conclusion, we may say that the succession and
talent in sport management should be part of the
organization's strategy and human resource
planning scheme and it should be aligned with the
current needs and requirements of organizational
involvement. Human resource planning includes
guidance and demographic data analysis, the
growth rate prov isions, and arranging talent
supply and demand for civic, availability of
external work. The programs of succession and
talent in management should b e developed taking

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65
into account the analysis and should be linked to
existing recruitment, performance mana gement, training and development, leadership development
and career planning initiatives.

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