How?

How to use the tours of duty approach? 

• Acknowledge that guaranteeing long-term employment or expecting long-term loyalty by talents is not viable 
• Get to know individual values, aspirations, competencies, and potentials of talents 
• Identify challenging, interesting, valuable & visible work packages (projects, initiatives) for a pre-defined time interval 
• Engage in an open and transparent conversation with talents to define and agree on the mission of the tour of duty 
• Work together with the talent to determine the specifics of the tour of duty, offer company’s commitment and invite talent’s commitment to the tour of duty 
• Provide necessary resources and remove obstacles for the tour of duty 
• Track progress, offer coaching when needed, and encourage visibility of successful progress on the tour of duty

How to use open developmental networks approach? 

• Recruit and select people not only for their competencies but also for their connections 
• Encourage talents to think about and visualize their current and desired developmental network (sharing is not necessary) 
• Engage in mutual sharing of (instrumental & psychosocial) resources acquired through the organization’s and talent’s 
• Jointly identify needed activities for moving towards desired developmental network (e.g., external exposure and events) 
• Support talents (& act as an intermediary) in developing valuable internal and external connections  
• Encourage talents to keep their networks, resilient, diverse and open  
• Review & optimize across talents’ networks 

How to use the alumni and boomerangs approach? 

• Instill organizational culture that embraces external mobility of talent and ensures openness and transparency around it 
• Explain and promote the intentions and benefits of company alumni at the organizational entry  
• Do pre-emptive ‘exit’ discussions to ensure that potential for value creation exists before talent mobility starts unfolding  
• At exit make sure connection protocols are established with alumni, collaboration opportunities are identified and future re-entry is discussed as a viable option 
• At potential re-entry request examine the relationship with the alumnus since s/he left the company and re-evaluate alignment. 
• In case alumnus (boomerang) fits, re-hire, and engage in ‘repatriation’ activities. 
• Review & optimize across talents