by Joseph Daniel McCool, Senior Contributing Editor, ExecuNet

So how does your company’s senior leadership team stack up against the competition? Uncovering the answer to that question — critical in the eyes of both shareholders and potential executive-level hires — may be as simple as taking a broad look at your company’s talent management practices.

When Fortune magazine recently released its 2006 annual lists of the “Most Admired Companies” in the world and the United States, it based its selections on how companies scored on eight key competitive benchmarks, including innovation, people management, use of corporate assets, social responsibility, quality of management, financial soundness, long-term investment and quality of products/services.

ExecuNet’s analysis of the lists reveals that three of the six companies the magazine identified as leaders in management quality (Procter & Gamble, GE and United Parcel Service) also ranked among the six top performers in its people management ranking. Conversely, four of the six lowest-ranked companies in the management quality rating (Tenet Healthcare, U.S. Airways Group, United Airlines parent UAL, and auto parts maker Delphi) also ranked among the five companies ranked lowest in the people management category.

That means your organization’s ability to recruit and retain executive-level talent may be influenced by the quality of its talent management practices much farther down the organizational ladder. With an increasing number of financial analysts, media and institutional shareholders placing scores on management quality, it’s clear that investing in people will pay dividends, build trust and generate appealing headlines.

Article contributed by:
Joseph Daniel McCool, Senior Contributing Editor, ExecuNet
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First published in RecruitSmart Insider, ExecuNet’s biweekly market intelligence report.

Joseph Daniel McCool
Senior Contributing Editor
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