Conceptualisation of Talent Management in United Kingdom (UK) Higher Education Institutions in the context of New Public Management: Academics Perspective

Oseki, Precious

Abstract

Talent management (TM) has been one of the dominant debates among professional and academic literature since the 2000s. Its various approaches and practices have been adopted by many private organisations globally. However, despite the popularity of TM literature, there are certain contexts and sectors that remain relatively underrepresented, such as the public sector and/or higher education institutions (Al Ariss, Cascio and Paauwe, 2014; Sparrow and Makram, 2015; Khilji et al., 2015; Kravariti and Johnson, 2019; Gallardo-Gallardo, Thunnissen and Scullion, 2020; Kravariti et al., 2023).

Likewise, there is little empirical research into the ways that academics conceptualise talent and TM, as well as its practices and processes in their institutions. Therefore, this study seeks to contribute to the conceptual and empirical understanding of talent and TM within Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in the context of New Public Management (NPM) within the theoretical framework of stewardship theory. This study uncovered how talent and TM are defined and perceived by academics in UK HEIs, a sector that is increasingly competing on a global level for academic talent. The research further outlines the relationship between TM, NPM and stewardship theory. The aim of the research is twofold: First, to understand the perception of academics in relation to talent and TM practices in the context of NPM. Second, to provide valuable insights aimed at informing good practice and policymaking for academia and organisation management.

An interpretivist philosophy with multiple cases is adopted as the primary research method. Two Northwest England HEIs are selected as the qualitative cases, with one being a member of the Russell Group universities and the other a non-member of the group. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with academics at different levels of their career and trajectory. Cases documents related to HRM and TM were reviewed.

Findings indicated that individualism, limited and partially developed performance management practices, ad-hoc career management practices, staff training, formal and informal mentorship, and the type of line manager were the main attributes of the TM practices observed by academics as NPM reform cut through their institutions. In addition, the research reveals that there are some levels of similarities and differences in the way academics in the two cases conceptualise talent, TM and TM operationalisation.

• Thesis Type: Thesis
• Deposit Date: Oct 18, 2024
• Publicly Available Date: Nov 25, 2024
• Award Date: Oct 24, 2024