Talent

This monograph starts from an earlier proposal for an Army officer corps strategy, which treats four tasks as linked: bringing talented leaders in, developing them, keeping them, and putting them to work. The authors hold that each task depends on the others, and they plan to examine each one in turn, beginning with a definition of talent.

Their definition is broad. Talent, in their view, is not limited to a select few but belongs to everyone, and it takes a different shape in each person as a unique combination of skills, knowledge and behaviors. The authors argue that well-run organizations recognize this and are able to recruit and hold onto a wide range of such talent, which can then be developed and deployed to meet present and future needs.