DOI 10.17605/OSF.

IO/3E84F
ORCID 0009-0009-2559-6676

Contents
Talent Management as a Strategic Priority for Company Y ...................................................2
Research Question and Hypothesis ...............................................................................2
Research Objectives ...................................................................................................2
Justification for the Research Project .............................................................................3
Researcher Philosophy ................................................................................................3
Literature Review .......................................................................................................4
Benefits of Effective Talent Management for Organisations............................................................5
Significance of the Study ................................................................................................6
Research Approach and Methodologies ..........................................................................6
Qualitative Research Methods ...........................................................................................7
Quantitative Research Methods ..........................................................................................8
Task 2: Research ..........................................................................................................8
Importance of Qualitative and Quantitative Data .............................................................9
Sample Type and Size .............................................................................................. 10
Sampling Techniques ................................................................................................ 10
Costs and Access to Data .......................................................................................... 11
Ethical Considerations............................................................................................... 11
Reliability and Validity of Research Data ...................................................................... 12
Data Collection ........................................................................................................ 12
Data Analysis .......................................................................................................... 13
Results ..................................................................................................................... 14
Introduction ............................................................................................................ 14
Target Audience for the Research Outcomes ................................................................. 15
Method of Communication ......................................................................................... 15
Results and Findings................................................................................................. 16
Recommendations.................................................................................................... 18
Reflection .................................................................................................................. 20
Merits, Limitations, and Pitfalls of using Qualitative and Quantitative Methods.................... 20
Effectiveness of Applicable Research Methods for the Current Research ............................ 21
Future Considerations ............................................................................................... 21
Conclusion .............................................................................................................. 22

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Talent Management as a Strategic Priority for Company Y

People management is a very significant facet for organizations to keep up with competition. At the sme level,

talent management is not a smple human resource terminology that one comes across. The concept of talent

management requires the human resource to hire, manage, develop, and retain a productive workforce. Indeed,

companies that employ talent management stay competitive through systematic and consistent decisions about

worker development. The study outlines the proposal’s hypothesis or questions, literary analysis relevant to the

topic, theoretical frameworks, and advantages and disadvantages of the applicable frameworks.

Research Question and Hypothesis

A specific research question will guide the proposed study. Researchers need to focus on a specific topic,

research methodologies, and data analysis to ensure the trustworthiness of their findings. So, selecting the right

research question is essential for the proposed study to set boundaries and provides direction to the researcher

(Saunders, 2012). Therefore, the specific research question that will assist in investigating the study states;

RQ: How can Company Y implement talent management to withstand competition?

Indeed, investing in talent management will surely put Company Y ahead of competitors. On the other hand, a

gap exists within the organization’s culture that curtail effective implementation of talanet management. In

particular, Company Y wants to remain competitive through people management. So, the research question

will assist in uncovering the strategies to conduct talent management for Company Y to develop suitable

employees. Regardless, the researcher’s perception about the study will become the basis for hypothesis.

H0 (Null hypothesis): Effective implementation of talanet management wil make Company Y competitive.

H1 (Alternative hypothesis): Company Y can remain competitive without talent management.

Research Objectives

The following research objectives will guide the proposed study;

• Investigate how talent management enables companies to achieve better performance and competitive

advantage.

• Examine Company Y’s talent management strategies

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Justification for the Research Project

As a business consultant, helping Company Y achieve a competitive advantage is the ultimate goal. Identifying

the specific strengths and opportunities will assist in suggesting the most effective strategies to achiev a

competitive advantage. Company Y has a mission to become competitive through proper people managmenent.

So, I recognize human resource as the integral facet that will help Company Y achieve its set obejectives. My

position is to identify how the organization can implement talent management and the implications of the

strategy on achieveing a competitive edge.

In the contemporary business world, globalisation has led to challenges with developing employees’ skills to

reduce performance issues. Firms can have the best human resource managers but fail to attract and retain

suitable employees to improve their competitive advantage. However, organizations currently consider the

need for diversity and inclusion as effective strategiy to attract individuals with different talents. Organisations

need to attract and retain top performers within their industry, even in a rapidly changing work environment.

For instance, technology is driving significant changes in the workplace, and many firms are no longer relying

on permanent staff. According to Guthridge et al. (2008), most organisations in various industries are aware of

the changes that come with technology, with most of them agreeing that successful firms will have to plan for

even more rampant changes in the HR function.

Due to changes in technology and other facets that influence roganizations’ financial performance, many firms

experience problems designing and implementing sustainable workforce plans. For instance, when the HR

managers cannot predict which technology skills their companies require, they can also fail to recruit suitable

individuals for a particular job description. As a result, the proposed research will be significant in

understanding that Company Y can use talent management as a strategic priority in the face of numerous

changes in the workplace. So, the researcher will examine the organizations’ performance before and after

implementing talent management as a priority to remain competitive.

Researcher Philosophy

Different researchers have different expectations about the nature of the truth and knowledge. A personal
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approach to research guides every researcher. Research philosophy allows researchers to generate knowledge

when conducting a study (Kelly and Cordeiro, 2020). The philosophy guides a researcher on how data is

collected, analysed, and used. So, researchers must be aware of the beliefs and assumptions relating to the topic

under study. The researcher will utilise pragmatism to guide in developing relevant research philosophy.

According to Creswell and Creswell (2016), pragmatism holds that there is no single learning method because

there are multiple realities. In simple terms, there is no universal reality.

The researcher presents the philosophies through the hypothesis. Stating research hypothesis indicates the

researcher’s beliefs or opinions about the outcomes of the proposed study. With the null and alternative

hypothesis, the researcher will justify the ultimate reality with facts grounded on data. As a result, the

researcher palns to use different research methods to understand the issue under study from participants’

experiences with the strategic plan. For instance, different people in an organisation, such as HR managers and

subordinate employees, have different views on the talent management system. While one group may view

talent management as well implemented, another might view it as needing more work (Kelly and Cordeiro,

2020). Therefore, having a guiding narrative will allow the researcher to collect spefici data that will assist in

evaluating the effectiveness implementing talent management.

Literature Review

There is need for Company Y to implement strategic talent management to achieve a competitive advantage.

Willcox (2016) defines strategic talent management as an integrated approach that ensures orgnanizations have

the right people to achieve its strategic goals. Moreover, talent management compromises the entire chain of

human resources (HR) activities that deal with attracting, recruiting, developing, engaging, and retaining high-

performing people from the talent pool (Guthridge et al., 2008). In particular, organizations synchronise talent

with the overall business strategy to minimize grievances that result from poor people management. However,

every organisation has its unique needs, and an effective talent management system enables it to achieve them

(Fang et al., 2020). Therefore, a firm can have the best technology and replicate a rival's business model but

still be unsuccessful if it cannot attract and retain the right people for the job.

Globalization exposes businesses to a constant changing work environment, which requires faster adaptability.
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The market has become more flexible, and workers have more opportunities to move to areas where the best

opportunities are offered (Guthridge et al., 2008). According to Anwar et al. (2014), the right kind of talent

differentiates a company from its competitors. Firms that manage their workforce more efficiently have a

higher probability of achieving set goals and objectives by reducing performance management costs (Aina and

Atan, 2020). Organisations in the contemporary world need to assist employees in developing suitable skills to

improve business performance and results. For an effective talent management strategy, HR managers at

Company Y must identify the different ways to motivate, train, and retain productive workers.

There are various ways that an organisation can use talent management to achieve strategic aims and goals.

According to Wilcox (2016), organisations should not invest in all people in similar ways. This author’s study

argues that investing in talent should be a focused investment in specific individuals who return the best

performance for the organisation. The first method that firms can utilise is aligning people with roles. During

hiring, HR managers should ensure that they recruit the right people for the current role (Bethke-Langenegger

et al.,2011). To achieve a competitive advantage through talent management, firms have to hire employees who

will grow with them despite their next step. Firms that utilise talent management save time and resources

required to hire replacements. The talent pool could be people within the company or outside the company. In

addition, training and development are strategically linked with strategic talent management.

Benefits of Effective Talent Management for Organisations

For talent management to drive success for any firm, it has to be implemented effectively. According to

Bethke-Langenegger et al. (2011), talent management has to support corporate and business strategy to be

successful. Talent management has been associated with many benefits for employees, senior management, and

HR managers. Most organisations view talent as an essential resource that allows sustainable competitive

advantage and better performance for the firm and employees. However, Aina and Atani (2020) argue that only

firms that manage their employees efficiently and effectively are able to attain their aims and objectives and

better performance. The success of any firm significantly relies on hiring the right employees with the right

skills in the correct department.

Strategic talent management positively correlates with workers' engagement, attraction, and retention levels.
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Bethke-Langenegger et al.(2011) found that strategic talent management positively impacted employee

engagement. Aina and Atan (2020) posit that a successful business strategy should have an appropriate

methodology for improving its workers. These findings support Bethke-Langenegger et al. (2011), who found

that firms with established talent management had better quality and skills from their employees. Every

organisation should have a method of identifying potential employees, providing a competitive compensation

plan, talent training and development, and measuring worker performance.

Effective talent management directly impacts organisational performance. Bethke-Langenegger et al. (2011)

concludes that firms with effective talent management experience better financial performance than rivals

within the same industry. Indeed, Anwar et al. (2014)’s findings that effective talent management has a

significant role in improving organisational performance. In particular, organizations with proper talent

management can achieve a competitive edge due to suitable employees. Suppose Company Y recruits a

suitable workforce, it will experience higher customer satisfaction that increases financial flow and a

competitive position. Therefore, recommending talent management for the organization will positively impact

its performance in diverse magnitudes.

Significance of the Study

There is much research on talent management and its importance to organisations. Many researchers agree that

firms can use talent management to achieve set strategic goals (Aina and Atan, 2020; Bethke-Langenegger,

Mahler, and Staffelbach, 2011; Wilcox, 2016). The existing literature on talent management provides insights

on the positive rewards of effective talent management. Indeed, the global econiomics exposes organizations to

uumerous changes, and it is the duty of the HR managers to develop adaptive employess to reduce performance

issues. So, the proposed study will consider Company Y’s organizational structure, goals, culture, and business

environment to suggest the effective way to implement talent management. The literature informs Company Y

about the need to adopt talent management as the research proposes the suitable ways to incorporate talent

management in its strategic priorities to achieve competitive advantage.

Research Approach and Methodologies

The proposed study seek to help Company Y implement talaent management to increase performance and
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market capitalization. Research methodologies will assist in extracting data necessary to justify the existing

hypothesis. These approaches utilise different sampling methods, data collection and analysis, and results

presentation (Creswell and Creswell, 2016). For the proposed study, the researcher will employ two specific

research methodologies; qualitative and quantitative designs.

Qualitative Research Methods

The researcher will employ qualitative research design to collect theoretical data regarding the topic of interest.

A qualitative study is highly descriptive and aims at exploring human experiences comprehensively (Creswell

and Creswell, 2016). Indeed, implementing talent management will have diverse impacts on the employer and

employees alike. For instance, Company Y has a diverse and inclusive workforce which exposes the strategic

plan to different opinions. So, qualitative methods will collect data from the focus group to undertand their

opinions about talent management. The researcher will understand the attitudes and opinions of participants

regarding the issue under study because the results provide in-depth information (Allwoood, 2012; Hameed,

2020; Rahman, 2017). Qualitative methods allow the research to employ an insider's perspective because it is

personal and highly subjective.

Researchers can collect qualitative data in several ways. The researcher wants to know how the HR manager

and the employees feel about implementing talent management. So, the researcher will use open-ended

questionnaires and structured interviews to gather information from the focus group (Rahman, 2017). In other

words, the researcher will conduct a field study to build a relationship with the participants to generate in-depth

information about the study topic. Knowing the suitable way to implement talent management requires

acknowledging employees’ existing perceptions about the strategic plan (Hameed, 2020). Moreover, the

researcher will utilize phenomenology to report the study;s findings. According to Rahman (2017),

phenomenology will allow the researcher to report participants’ experiences rather than their opinions.

Regardless, using qualitative research design during data collection can subject the study to ethical concerns.

Foremost, researchers develop a relationship with participants, and so they can influence what the participants

report. Secondly, the study focuses on Company Y, exposing the study to sampling bias as the focus group may

fail to demonstrate a true reflection of the entire population (Allwood, 2012). Finally, the participants can also
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report false information to fit the researcher’s context and needs. Regardless, qualiatitive research design will

assist the researcher in acquiring extensive theoretical data about talent management within Company Y.

Quantitative Research Methods

Implementing talent management will impact the cash flows for Company Y. Quantitative research methods

denote a set of strategies, methods, and assumptions that use numeric patterns as a method of exploration

(Creswell and Creswell, 2016). So, the researcher will also employ quantitative research design to investigate

the implications of talent management on Company Y’s accounting. In particular, quantitative design will

focus on financial statemenents before and after implementing talent management. For instance, quantitative

methods will assist in assessing how talent management can influence performance management costs within

Company Y. As a result, the quantitative data will be collected through questionnaires and structured

interviews with the HR managers and organization’s accountatnts (Allwoood, 2012). Moreover, the data will

be coded through graphs and tables. The researcher will also employ statistical analysis to recognize the

relationship between talent management and better performance.

Quantitative research methods will measure the impact of talent management on organisational performance.

The researcher will benefit in various ways by utilizing quantitative research techniques during data collection.

Foremost, data collected through quantitative methods are reliable and accurate (Allwoood, 2012; Creswell and

Creswell, 2016). Company Y upholds integritity and punishes foul actions by employees. So, the HR and

accountants cannot falsify the data on how talent management impacts the cash flows. Moreover, quantitative

design allows researchers to access data faster, analysis the data, and let the numbers speak for themselves.

However, the limiting factor about quantitative research is that it does not explain why participants hold their

views (Allwoood, 2012; Hameed, 2020). In other words, it focuses on numbers rather than participants beliefs

and opinions. Further, the researcher cannot follow up on answers given compared to qualitative research

methods. Rahman (2017) further notes that quantitative research does not explain social phenomena, which

may make it difficult to understand the environment and attitudes of individuals towards certain concepts.

Research

The research focuses on how Cmpany Y can implement talent management as a strategic plan to outdo
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competititors. Indeed, organizations rely on business consultants to recognize and address issues that curtail

excellent performance. In particular, the researcher uses quantitative and qualiatative research designs to

recognize suitable ways to integrate talent management within Company Y. The section focuses on the

methods utilized during data collection and analysis, sampling techniques, and ethical considerations. Further,

the section identifies the trustworthiness of the research so that any organization can feel confidence while

implementing talent management.

Importance of Qualitative and Quantitative Data

Quantitative design assist the researcher in retrieving numerical data about the issue under study. According to

Creswell and Creswell (2016), legitimate quantitative data is reliable. The researcher needs to know if

implementing talent management will positively impact Company Y’s financial position and market

capitatlization. So, quantitative design collects numerical data relating to books of accounts before and after

implementing talent management within Company Y. In particular, the researcher engages the organization’s

HR manager and accountants to retrieve the numerical value of talent management, especially on the financial

statements. As a business consultant, helping Company Y address performance issues is a necessity to achieve

a competitive edge. Indeed, quantitative methods assist in recognizing the connection between talent

management and performance costs. However, quantitative data has its weaknesses. Research findings cannot

be based on participants’ views but focuses on statistical results (Gray, 2009). Therefore, quantitative research

design assist the researcher to determine the specific balance sheet costs affected when Company Y

implements talent management.

Using qualitative research design availed of several benefits to the researcher. Foremost, qualitative data

provides theoretical information about implementing talent management in Company Y. The research seeks to

help HR manager at Company Y to implement talent management effectively. So, gathering opinions about

talent management is essential to identify suitable ways to implement the strategy. Qualiative research design

helps to understand participants’ beliefs, perceptions, and feedback about talent management as a strategic

plan. In addition, integrating qualitative research is valuable to understand how incorporating talent

management in Company Y can affect its skilled-personel to gain a competitive advantage. Regardless,
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quantitative and qualitative research designs suits the study as the researcher can extract in-depth information

from the focus group to justify the hypothesis.

Sample Type and Size

The research investigates ways to implement talent management within Company Y and effects of

implementing it as a strategic plan for a competitive edge. So, the sample population will be members within

Company Y’s business structure. In particular, the researcher focuses on the HR department, accounting

department, and the general workforce. Company Y does not recruit employees below eighteen years of age,

and so the sample population will have an age bracket between 18 to 60, male and female. Besides, the sample

size includes at least 30 participants, which is half the entire population at Company Y. Ethics considerations

are taken into place while deciding on the sample type and size for the research.

Sampling Techniques

Sampling refers to the procedure that a researcher adopts in selecting participants for the research. According

to Flick (2011), inappropriate sampling results in a biased representation of the target population. According to

Creswell and Creswell (2016), a large sample size for a qualitative study is complex requires more time and

multi-layered analysis. However, the sample selected must be large enough to ensure the inclusion of most

perceptions. On the other hand, large sample sizes for quantitative data are preferred because they can be

generalised. Creswell and Creswell (2016) reported that a good sample must represent the sample and must be

affordable. The research utilizes non-probability and probability sampling methods. According to their study,

probability sampling allows for a random selection of participants. The aspects of random selction is realized

when choosing participants among the subordinates. Employee at Company Y have the opportunity to

participate in the research at their free will. Therefore, its allows the target population to have an equal

opportunity of inclusion in the study.

The researcher also used non-probability method of sampling. Non-probability sampling allows the researcher

to select respondents according to their own judgement (Flick, 2011; Gray, 2009). The researcher employs the

method during the selection of participants at the top-managment of the organization. Besides, it provides the

priviledge of purposive sampling where the researcher can make generalized decisions during sampling.
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Indeed, the researcher picked the top-levela HR manager and accountant within Company Y to accomplish the

study. Undoubetedly, the researcher beleifes that top-rank HR managers and accountants have access to

Company Y’s financial accounts and other integral information about the company.So, the researcher selects

high performing employees from Company Y who have at least five years of experience in the HR and

accounting positions.

Costs and Access to Data

Researching about a topic of interest requires gathering extensive data that can be time-consuming and

demanding. Besides, researchers must incur specific costs during study to accomplish the ultimate goal. So,

first cost incurred to access data either through qualitative or quantitative designs relates to costs were incurred

in printing questions for the interviews and questionnaires. The researcher has to print enough pages for

participants to fill throughout the course of the research. Participants will report their experiences with talent

mangment overtime and not on a one-time basis, and thus, increases the costs of printouts. Another cost that

will the researcher will incur within the scope of the study regards time factor costs. Indeed, the participants are

working employees within Company Y. In particular, participants will not omit some working hours to attend

interviews with the researcher. Such distractions from work can incur great costs to Company Y due to lost

productive hours.

Ethical Considerations

Ethics guide the morals and trustworthiness of a research. Ethical considerations are significant especially

where the researcher needs to understand behaviors of human participants (Fleming and Zegwaard, 2018). The

first ethical consideration utilized by the researcher relates to informed consent. Indeed, before starting the

study, the researcher provides relevant information to help participants make informed decisions to participate

in the study. All respondents were required to voluntarily and formally consent to partake in the research

process.. The researcher provides detailed information about the risks and benefits of participating in the study.

As a result, it created a bond of trust between the researcher and participants.

The researcher also considers confidentiality of participants’ credentials during the research and while reprting

the results. Confidentiality requires researchers to handle participants' information in a confidential manner
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(Fleming and Zegwaard, 2018). The researchers ensures that participants' personally identifiable data such as

name or ID numbers are anonymous to prevent data breach. Moreover, the researcher assigned code names to

the participants to ensure discrecy of participants identify during phenomenological reporting. Therefore,

ethical considerations also promotes research trustworthiness as the researcher will have integrity while

collecting and reporting data.

Reliability and Validity of Research Data

Given that the study entailed both qualitative and quantitative research data, the concepts for validity and

reliability are broader. Flick (2011) defines validity as to how the interpretations and concepts have similar

meanings between the researchers and participants. On the other hand, reliability refers to the degree to which

research results are consistent over time and are a precise representation of the entire population under study

(Creswell and Creswell, 2016). A study is considered reliable if the findings can be replicated under a similar

methodology (Creswell and Creswell, 2011; Flick, 2011; Gray, 2009). To ensure validity and reliability of the

content of the questionnaire and interview questions, the two instruments were reviewed by official

statisticians. In addition, the researcher conducted a pilot study involving 30 participants to test their reliability

and validity.

Triangulation refers to using two or more data collection methods to study a specific phenomenon. Combining

different methods allows the researcher to overcome weaknesses and biases that arise from using one approach.

The researcher used triangulation of data to attain confirmation of results through a convergence of various

perspectives of the participants (Creswell and Creswell, 2016). Data from primary sources were triangulated

with data from secondary sources to find common themes. The literature review was used as a secondary data

source, which helped the researcher formulate questions for the questionnaires and interviews.

Data Collection

The current research utilised primary and secondary data. Primary data denotes information collected from the

source and has not been analysed. Primary data was collected directly from the population under study through

interviews and questionnaires with selected participants from Company Y. Secondary data, on the other hand,

is information that has already been collected and assessed. Secondary data can be derived from published
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research, internet material, and media reports. Primary and secondary data can be qualitative or quantitative.

The difference lies in the type of information collected and the methods used to analyse it. Quantitative and

qualitative data are practical but provide different information through different methods. The current research

utilised qualitative and quantitative data. Quantitative data was collected through questionnaires.

The use of questionnaires to collect data is fast and requires fewer resources. In addition, questionnaires make

it easy for a researcher to collect data from a large audience quickly. Additionally, some participants may fail

to answer all the questions, which might affect the data analysis process. Finally, there may be a difference in

understanding and interpretation of the questions. Participants may require the researcher to be available to

answer any question regarding the questionnaires. Poor understanding may result in skewed results.

Conclusions from quantitative data will indicate how talent management can improve cash flows when

included as a firm’s strategic priority.

Qualitative data was collected using semi-structured interviews, while quantitative data was collected through

questionnaires. Semi-structured interviews produce crucial information on personal perspectives and

experiences through discussion. The interviews required participants’ attitudes towards talent management as a

strategic priority within the firm. Semi-structured interviews are a primary data source that provides first-hand

information that could not have been achieved through other methods such as questionnaires. In addition, the

use of semi-structured interviews provided the researcher with an understanding of how employees from

different departments viewed talent management. While semi-structured interviews are vital in collecting in-

depth data, it is time-consuming. The researcher spent more time during interviews than anticipated because

participants had deeper explanations for their opinions. In addition, conducting the interviews required more

resources than anticipated. Qualitative data was also collected from secondary sources from existing literature.

There has been much research that has been conducted on the importance of talent management to an

organisation.

Data Analysis

There are different methods to analyse quantitative and qualitative data. Qualitative data were analysed using

thematic analysis. The thematic analysis focuses on exploring themes and patterns within collected data. Data
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collected from interviews was organised transcribed. The researcher then generated codes and themes (Maguire

and Delahunt, 2017). Coding is the process of developing themes by classifying objects of interest in the data

and putting a label on them (Costley et al. 2010). The author further reviewed themes against coded data to

ensure that they matched. The themes were further compared to the collected data to determine a pattern. The

researcher used the various themes to interpret the collected data and write a report. The researcher decided to

use thematic analysis to emphasise the organisation and description of collected data. According to Flick

(2011), the thematic analysis goes beyond counting words and phrases in a text and examines meaning within

data. In addition, thematic analysis is flexible and works with different research questions and designs.

Thematic analysis is essential in examining participants' experiences, perspectives, and behaviour (Maguire

and Delahunt, 2017). Thematic analysis was chosen for the current research because it aided the researcher in

understanding the participants' perspectives of enjoining talent management in their organisation's strategic

priorities.

The researcher also used cross-tabulation to analyse quantitative data. Cross-tabulation is essential in

examining the relationship within data that may be apparent. The method of data analysis is essential in

analysing data collected from questionnaires, which makes it the most appropriate for the current research

(Maguire and Delahunt, 2017). Cross-tabulations denotes data tables that present results from participants and

enables the researcher to examine the relationship between data. The researcher utilised a pivotal table report to

analyse data collected from quantitative research.

Results

Introduction

Communicating the results of research to stakeholders is crucial area for this scenario. Effective

communication must consider various elements such as the researcher’s and audience's level of understanding,

interest, and cultural background. Before presenting research findings, it is essential to reflect on the

effectiveness and reliability of data collection and analysis. Besides, stakeholders have different

conceptualization, and it is essential to communicate the right message to the right group (Ulrich, 2021). The

following sections highlight the outcomes of the research as presented to the stakeholders.
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Target Audience for the Research Outcomes

Stakeholders at Company Y requires a strategic plan to achieve a competitive value. The research identifies

talent management as best fit for improving its performances. As a result, the outcomes of the study are

directly communicated to the shareholders to specify areas that need sufficient investments. The researcher

acknowledges that talent management will prevent talent limitation in specific areas within Company Y

(Ulrich, 2021). Indeed, the results of the research should represent stakeholder interests which include retaining

a talented workforce to minimize costs due to performance issues. In addition, the board of management is

interested in succession planning in ensuring that always have a talent pool to avoid lags when executing

corporate and business strategy.

Company Y’s HR manager is also a significant audience for the study’s outcomes. The organization depends

on the HR professionals to recrtut suitable employees for a productive future (Ulrich, 2021). In addition, they

ensure that the organisation has a diverse and robust talent pipeline that will help achieve strategic goals. The

HR department ensures a strong talent pipeline, diversity and inclusion, and a reputation to enable the firm to

attract the best talent within the industry. In particular, the outcomes will be suitable for the HR manager to

undertsnd the most effective ways to develop employees’ skills. For instance, the strategies can be through

education, motivation, bonuses, and promotions. Therefore, the outcomes will recommend the appropriate

implementation strategy for talent management within Company Y.

Method of Communication

The researcher will use phenomenological reporting to communicate the results from qualitative research

design to the target audience. Phenomenological assist in reporting findings based on participants opinions

rather than researcher’s narrative. For instance, including participants’ responses as direct quotes will

accurately communicate the results to the target audience. The stakeholders will acknowledge that they should

invest in people management if they see the impacts on the balance sheets. Besides, the researcher will use

codes to communicate specific people management themes that can assist the HR managers in providing

sufficient resources to improve the workforce.

The researcher will also use a presentation to communicate the results to the stakeholders. Communicating the
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results using a report may pose some challenges because stakeholders may not have the time to complete the

entire report. So, the researcher will set time to present the findings to the target audience to clarify on areas

that need special attentions. Nonetheless, presentations provide the researcher with the previledge of flexibility

as it is dne at the researcher’s and audience’s convenience. Regardless, different reports will be prepared for

the different stakeholders according to their interests for the current reporting standards. Using a presentation

allows the researcher to meet stakeholders face and face and engage in a conversation about the findings. In

addition, a presentation allows the researcher to use visual aids that captures and maintains an audience's

attention. Visual aids make the presentation enjoyable through media that improves the audience's focus.

Results and Findings

The researcher finds that Company Y can implement talent management, and it brings diverse advantages to

the organization. So, the researcher suggest talent management as effective strategic priority for Company Y to

achieve a competitive advantage. The research collected data from 30 participants woking within Company Y

for the past five years and counting. The table below represents information derived from semi-structured

interviews at Company Y. Most employees provide their perceptions on ways to implement talent management

based on organization’s attraction, people management, renumerations, and successon planning. Indeed, the

participants suggest that mentorships, performance appraisals, internal promotions, and salary satisfaction are

some of the ways to sustain a talented workforce.

Themes from Semi-structured Interviews

Talent Acquisition Talent Remuneration Succession

• Performance • Internal mentors • Salary • No knowledge

appraisal system • Focused training satisfaction of succession

• Skill-based and • Equitable planning

recruitment. development salaries and • Internal

opportunities promotions

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• No outside

talent pool

Table 1: Themes from semi-structured interviews

The researcher finds that employees at Company Y value remuneration policies that are fair to develop their

skills. In particular, the workforce requires a reasonable and equitable salary without porejudice on age, race,

gender, or a protected class. While some of the employees say that salary and remuneration at the Company Y

are fair, a significant number differed while others were not sure. During the interview, some employees

further noted that some of their colleagues were paid more to complete the same tasks. Regardless, the focus

group suggests that bonuses for good work done will complement renumerations during people managment.

The pie chart below illustrates how participants reacted to renumerations and salaries as a talent management

strategy.

Respondents' Attitudes Towards Salary and Renumeration

Yes No Maybe

Figure 1: Respondents’ attitudes towards salary and renumuration

Company Y benefits from talent management on a grander scale, considering the outcomes of the study. The

results show that Company Y should utilize skill-based recruiting process to ensure that they attract the best

talent in the market. Indeed, sometimes it can challenge the HR managers to find the right pool of talent for a

give task. Skill-based recruitment emphasises on workers prior experiences and skills relating to the job

description. While this might lead to better firm performance, these are not necessary to achieve a competitive

advantage for the firm. Fang et al. (2020) argue that driving passion in workers improves their performances

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within the workplace. So, Company Y should integrate performance appraisal to acknowledge employees who

remain productive in the long-run. Indeed, appraising employees sparks passion within them that foster

sufficient engagement with organizational activities. The results indicate that at least 60% of the participants

felt motivated to stay productive when their efforts are recognized and rewarded.

Another outcome of the study indicates that the HR manager at Company Y, can use internal mentors to

develop employees’ skills and competencies. Indeed, its increases the percentage of workers willing wo do

their best to remain productive within the organization. Most participants acknowledge that finding someone to

mentor on job descrition creates specialization that increases productivity. The researcher finds that the HR

manager at Company Y should interact with employees to identify specific areas to adjust through

mentorships. Fang et al. (2020) explain that HR managers can also employ worker education as a way to

mentor workers within Company Y. As a result, Company Y will achieve high retention rates as workers are

likely to remain where their skilled are valued and rewarded. Moreover, retaining a productive and empowered

workforce positively correlates with achieving a competitive advantage for the company. Therefore, the pie

chart below represents how respondents feel about their future at Company Y considering the concept of

people management through mentorship programs.

Respondents' Future with Company Y

Yes No Maybe

Figure 2: Respondent’s on their future at Company Y.

Recommendations

Talent management assist organizations in achieving several benefits relating to performance and market

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capitalization. However, very few companies identify the most effective ways to incorporate talent

management into their business strategy without facing significant challenges. As a result, a study is initiated to

help Company Y implement talent management effectively and outline its benefits to the organization

experience. The suggestions’ audiences will be the firm's stakeholders and the HR management to implement

people management sufficiently. The following section recognizes the specific recommendations by the

researcher considering the study’s findings;

• Company Y should employ skill-based recruitment strategy to attract more diverse talents. Indeed, the

current competition in the labour market requires that an organisation attracts and retains the best talent

in the market. Company Y will only retain skilled and experienced employees if its recruits different

talents. Moreover, hiring qualified and suitable employees with previous experiences will make it

easiers to mentor them, spark a significant level of passion among them. Skilled-based recruitment that

considers inclusion and openness will promote sufficient collaboration within the organization.

Employees with professional experience tend to work with collegues hand-in-hand to improve their

productivity and job profile. Regardless, Company Y must also provide better compensation plans. By

doing so, the firm will experience higher retention rates, which translates to a better competitive

advantage against rivals.

• Company Y can implement talent management through by mentoring its workforce to increase their

skills. In particular, the organization should mentor employees through education programs regarding

different job particulars. For instance, the HR manager should maintain open communication with

employees to identify their needs and suggest the most suitable educational program. Indeed, education

will mentor the workforce as employees will feel valued, engaged, and cared for by the organization.

The findings specifiy that a significant number of participants feel productive and less likely to quit

working when organizations add value to their skills through education and mentorship.

• Finally, Company Y can employ transformational leadership to assist in implementing effective taent

management. Transformational leaders can empower employees who do not feel the organization’s

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impacts on their skills. Such implementations allow Company Y to build a closer relationship with its

workforce, resulting into effective communication of issues within the workforce. The use of better

communication channels such as emails and memos will ensure that all employees are given the chance

to participate in organizational decisions regarding performance. Therefore, Company Y will improve

customer satisfaction and engagement to achieve a competitive edge if it considers the above

recommendations.

Reflection

The researcher conducted a study on how Company Y can adopt talent management as a strategic priority to

improve competitive advantage and organisational performance. As a result, the researcher utilizes more than

one research design to collect data for grounding facts. The costs of using more than one research method were

weighed against developing better research skills and providing more robust results from the study. In

particular, the researcher used different research designs because the qualitative and quantitative designs

collects theoretical and numerical data. Prior to commencing the study, the researcher developed the skills

necessary to conduct studies using the two approaches; quantitative and qualitative research methods.

Merits, Limitations, and Pitfalls of using Qualitative and Quantitative Methods

The use of more than one research method for the study provides the researcher with more data that improve

the reliability and validity of the study. Qualitative and quantitative data were used complementarily. The study

benefited from the data content that reinforced and shaped each other to provide more substantial results. The

study's findings provided a fuller and richer picture of talent management within the organisation. The

researcher understood the frequency of companies that incorporated talent management into their strategy in

different companies. The participants were from different departments, making it easier to retrieve their

incorporation of talent management into their business strategy. Such information could not have been derived

from using single-method research.

Using qualitative and quantitative research methods require more efforts to complete. For instance, the

researcher needs to sample the focus group, conduct data collection and analysis, and write reports about the

study’s findings. Undoubetedly, qualitative research methods provides the researcher with extensive data that
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can be time-consuming to analyze and interpret. Even though qualitative data analysis takes time to process,

the process gathers theoretical information that could not be retrieved numerically. The decision to use more

than one research method was just one of the steps in the research process. The researcher had to decide the

best data analysis techniques to meet the study’s objectives.

Another limitation for using different research designs is the high probability of underdevelopment of either

qualitative or quantitative research method. Prior to beginning the study, the researcher recognizes the

possibility of using qualitative and quantitative research designs during data collection. However, such

considerations may undermine the study results because the researcher may focus on one method than the

other. As a result, it can creat inconsistencies in the research findings as the researcher can report results from

one design than the other.

Effectiveness of Applicable Research Methods for the Current Research

Despite the limitations, the use of qualitative and quantitative research methods was best fit for the study. The

researcher had access to information that broadened the knowledge on talent management in the selected

organisation using semi-structured interviews and questionnaires. Additionally, the developed an understaning

on how HR managers should view and implement effective talent management. While this information could

have been derived from qualitative data, it was essential to the researcher to have these questions answered

straightforwardly without any possibility of doubt. In addition, the researcher was able to access in-depth

insider information about the attitudes of HR managers on talent management as a strategic priority. Further,

quantitative research methods availed information about talent managment’s impacts on Company Y’s

financial flows. Such numerical data allow the researcher to recognize the impacts of implanting talent

management on the Company’s operations. Therefore, the researcher used more than one research method to

produce valid and reliable results applicable in different contexts.

Future Considerations

Given that the study's objective was to investigate the incorporation of talent management as a strategic priority

for Company Y, a suitable consideration will be converting qualitative data into quantitative. Qualitative

methods are used when one wants to understand the concepts, opinions, and experiences of a specific group of
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people experiencing a specific phenomenon. The research method allows the researcher to collect in-depth

insight, especially people behavior, regarding the study topic. A qualitative study is still appropriate for the

current research because of the main objective of the research. The qualitative study helps to understand

participants’ attitudes towards talent management as a strategic priority.

While undertaking the research, the author learned that converting qualitative data into quantitative data is

possible. By doing so, a researcher does not have to collect quantitative data because qualitative data will be

sufficient. Quantitative analysis of qualitative data is turning data from words into statistics. The process allows

the calculation of simple frequencies and relationships between variables, which can be done manually or using

the software. Conducting research in the future will not require the author to collect different forms of data if

mixed methods research is selected. This decision will save the researcher time and resources required to

complete mixed-method research. However, the researcher believes that single-method research would still

meet the needs of a study depending on the study's objective. For a researcher to save time and money, it is

necessary to select the correct methodology that meets the needs of the phenomena under study.

Conclusion

The report highlights the importance of using appropriate research methods in research. The above research

utilised qualitative and quantitative methods to investigate how Company Y can implement and benefit from

talent management as a strategic priority to achieve competitive advantage and improve its performance. The

competitive nature of the labour market requires that companies attract and retain the best people from the

talent pool. There are numerous ways organisations can retain their talent, including training and developing,

offering competitive pay, and offering flexible working plans. In addition, there are numerous benefits when

firms decide to use talent management as a strategic priority, such as better employee engagement and

satisfaction, improved organisational performance, and competitive advantage against rivals. The results found

that while Company Y can implement a talent management strategy, and receive its rewards. A majority of the

participants in the research felt that the organisation can implement talent mnagment through mentorship

programs, skilled-based recruitment, or by sufficient compensation of the workforce. Qualitative and

quantitative data give insights into the attitudes of employees at Company Y regarding talent management and
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different strategies that the company can adopt to improve it. Therefore, the researcher provides specifc

recommendations that will assist Company Y in achieving a talent management as a strategic priority.

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