top stories

Continued investment in talent may avoid future risk to your business

07 Apr 2009

ACCA has published a new report warning businesses not to sacrifice their long-term prospects by responding to the global economic crisis with short-term cost-cutting measures.

The report, entitled Perspectives on Talent Management in Challenging Times, identifies that the primary concern for many companies is to survive the current economic downturn, and sounds a note of caution to any organisations considering compulsory redundancy as a solution to reducing their overheads.

'Even in these difficult times, staff cuts should always be a last resort,' said Jamie Lyon, ACCA senior manager – professional development. 'Now is a good time for businesses to invest in their current talent pool and to add depth to that pool through continued investment in training and professional development. It could be as late as 2010 or 2011 before the world begins to emerge from the current economic situation, but when the upturn in the economy does arrive, you don’t want your business to be at risk as a result of short-term thinking in the past.'

The report acknowledges different approaches to assessing staffing costs besides compulsory redundancies that could eventually prove beneficial to businesses once the economy improves.

'The challenges many organisations are facing right now is unprecedented, but experience tells us that those organisations that take holding positions or "paths to growth" strategies with corresponding investment in people are the fastest to recover and enjoy more sustainable commercial success over the longer term,' said Tony Osude, ACCA head of professional development. 'Getting talent management practices right is now more important than ever, particularly with renewed organisational focus on returns on investment - it needs to be a key business imperative for organisations.'

Access to the full report, as well as ACCA's Managing Human Capital programme - which features research, webcasts and details of ACCA's global conference programme - can be found at the Managing Human Capital programme microsite