In September of 2017 I published the LinkedIn article, Is Your Talent Like a Bowl of Blueberries? As I was re-reading the article it felt important to me to update the article and post it to the blog.

I remember one of my favourite quotes from Forrest Gump (Tom Hanks) - My momma always said, "Life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get." Well guess what ... your talent might be like that too, but it doesn’t need to be that way.

I was on a family vacation, visiting our beautiful province of Newfoundland for the first time. Discovering the most easterly part of this amazing country. On one of our daily hikes we decided to go to Cape Spear, outside of St. John’s, with gorgeous views and landscapes.

During the hike, my hubby and teenage daughter were far ahead rushing to get to where they were going. Our nine year old son and I were meandering. Enjoying the view. And we started to pick blueberries. The wild blueberries were everywhere.

All different shapes. Many different sizes. Some not yet ripe. Green. Some a deep blue. Many very similar with the same hue. And others purple.

As I scrolled through my photos recently I thought, “hmmm this photo makes me think about the current focus on talent”; yes I know what does a bowl of blueberries have to do with finding talent? Organizations vying to be the best. When to pick the blueberries? How to know if they are ready? The 2016 SHRM study entitled The New Talent Landscape stated that 68% of HR professionals are having difficulty recruiting full time candidates for their positions. There are numerous skill shortages, such as writing in English and basic computer skills. Also, the study confirmed that it is common for HR professionals to work without a training budget so offering existing employees an opportunity to gain new skills is extremely difficult.

Leaders often want to rush to the destination, as quickly as possible, much like my daughter and husband, in a hurry pushing onward. Leaders don’t realize the challenges that recruiters and HR face in getting the right talent with the right skills. Hiring managers and organizational leaders likely aren’t aware of the current levels of difficulty in filling open job vacancies.

Our little guy and I wanted to enjoy the moments and explore the beauty and surroundings and discover the surprises that many might not notice. We learned something new by slowing down, and taking a pause. Look around, look down, look up, see what you can find within. This applies to your organization too; many employees want the opportunity to learn and develop, yet they aren’t given the chance as they’re trying to rush to the destination too.

As we deal with the realities of our new normal which includes immersing ourselves in the fight for racial justice it is more important than ever to be an ally and advocate for diverse talent and minority owned businesses.

According to the Mckinsey & Company 2020 study Diversity wins: How inclusion matters , “Companies with more than 30 percent women executives were more likely to outperform companies where this percentage ranged from 10 to 30, and in turn these companies were more likely to outperform those with even fewer women executives, or none at all. A substantial differential likelihood of outperformance—48 percent—separates the most from the least gender-diverse companies.”

The study also looked at ethnic and cultural diversity as it relates to performance in the workplace and they found “In 2019, top-quartile companies outperformed those in the fourth one by 36 percent in profitability, slightly up from 33 percent in 2017 and 35 percent in 2014. As we have previously found, the likelihood of outperformance continues to be higher for diversity in ethnicity than for gender.”

Organizations with cultures that are homogenous or all the same blue hue won’t succeed. As they may not be reflective of their customer. The outcome is the focus, but how you get there is important. Find the unique talent, each blueberry with different skills to offer, that get you there. Whether you are creating a blueberry pie, blueberry muffins, some jam or simply sprinkling them on yogurt. You get the picture. As long as the talent contributes in a way that moves the organization to that final goal. You’ve got the Best Bowl of Blueberries in the world to make the end product amazing. The recipe for success! I know I’m not supposed to use “clichés”. Can’t help myself.

Handle with care.

Don’t squish the creativity.

Find the right mix.

And savour the flavour.

Now that I think about it, why not add some raspberries, peaches, mixed nuts and a few other unique ingredients to make it even more colourful. #Diversity of #Talent is the way to go.

What is your organization doing to find the right talent, keep existing talent and create a diverse culture that gets you to the vision and mission you set out to create? Keep going to that end-point but don’t forget to stop and pick some blueberries once in awhile.

Here are a few educational resources on racial justice and a link to the Canadian Centre for Diversity and Inclusion:

Black Lives Matter Canada

How to be an ally in Canada by @ctrljada

An Antiracist Reading List - Chapters | Indigo

Black Lives Matter watchlist - Netflix

Canadian Centre for Diversity and Inclusion - ccdi.ca

If you want help navigating any of your Talent or Culture issues, including Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging, please reach out as we are here for you!