What is a talent management system (TMS)?

TMS is a system that helps to bring together the main value of the company, namely the employees. Let’s call this value the talent bank. A talent bank has a variety of attributes like any other value. Among such attributes are the number of employees, their level of education, work experience, competence, motivation, and so on. An employee comes with a starter kit and becomes a part of the corporate system. In other words, the talent of the employee starts to play a role in the business processes. Thus, employee development is an investment in the company’s talent bank.

Many variables influence the growth of such a bank. To structure and organize work with employees, talent management systems have been developed. However, modern systems have such diverse functionality that it is sometimes very difficult to figure it out.

What functions are usually performed by a TMS?

1. Provision of the company with employees. This includes recruiting employees according to the specified parameters.
2. Realization of the potential of employees. Normally, a specialist with certain competencies should be hired for a specific task. The opposite situation is also possible, when the work does not require any deep knowledge or skills and an intern can easily perform it. This is clearly where the efficient allocation of resources matters. A specialist does what he or she is supposed to and efficiently solves the problem. While an intern, whose work is paid less, works with simple tasks, but at the same time improves own skills and qualifications.
3. Development of professional qualities . Typically TMS-like systems are reputable in helping assess the development vectors of employees. This translates into the ability to evaluate a competency and provide a platform for downloading online courses. It is also possible to form teams, in which a more experienced professional works in close collaboration with a young specialist.
4. Evaluating the effectiveness of employees. Such functionality helps building fair motivation system, retaining valuable employees, and removing ineffective staff from their positions.
5. Team building. Company news, congratulations announcement, internal forums and discussion let every employee feel part of the team.
6. Project management. This is perhaps the key functionality in such systems. A manager sets tasks, manages and controls their implementation, assess the quality of performance. There is so much to consider that only t an integrated talent management system can help.

Overall, depending on the needs of the company there may be fewer or more of the main functions of such systems. It is possible to combine several systems. For example, one for hiring personnel, another for project management, and a third for improving the qualifications of employees. However, it is so much easier and more efficient to find such a solution in one place.

What is the difference between a TMS and traditional HRM and ERP systems?

Many people find it difficult to distinguish between traditional HRM and ERP systems and a talent management system. The first two types of systems are focused on the administration of human resources for the purpose of managing working hours, administering the recruitment process or payroll, and so on. In other words, these are systems that are aimed at solving real (current) business problems. While the talent management system is part of the company’s long-term strategy aimed at achieving goals relying on its employees.