Exploring HR-professionals perceptions of a skills-based approach in talent management - A qualitative study of Finnish HR-professionals

Thumbnail Image

URL

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

School of Business | Master's thesis

Authors

Date

2025-03-26

Department

Major/Subject

Mcode

Degree programme

Master's programme in People Management and Organizational Development

Language

en

Pages

68

Series

Abstract

Continuous skill development is essential for companies and individuals to remain competitive in an increasingly complex labor market. The increasing need for reskilling, up-skilling, and lifelong learning requires organizations to adopt more effective approaches for identifying, assessing, and utilizing competencies. This thesis explores the ways in which various Finnish HR-professionals conceptualize the idea of a skills-based approach in talent management, including how they perceive its impact on current organizational talent practices, and what benefits and challenges they anticipate in its implementation. Ten semi-structured interviews with ten participating HR-professionals were conducted as a method of this qualitative study. Thematic analysis was used for analyzing the data. The data analysis revealed six major themes that can be grouped into two general categories. Firstly, HR-professionals conceptualize the skills-based approach as an opportunity to redefine work beyond traditional job titles, emphasizing the importance of competency mapping and continuous learning. Secondly, they identify both benefits and challenges in implementing this approach to current talent management practices, such as enhanced employee engagement, improved collaboration across teams, and the necessity for ongoing skills development. These findings highlight both the benefits and challenges associated with implementing a skills-based approach in talent management. According to the findings, HR-professionals perceive that the skills-based approach holds promise for enhanced organizational flexibility and improved talent management practices. Nonetheless, issues such as lack of understanding what skills are needed, continuous learning demands to stay effective in the labor market, and challenge in integrating the approach with current organizational talent strategies were frequently brought to light. In conclusion, these findings provide valuable insights for Finnish organizations considering the adoption of a skills-based approach as part of talent management. While the approach offers significant transformative potential, addressing these key challenges is crucial for its successful implementation.

Description

Supervisor

Vuorenmaa, Hertta

Thesis advisor

Vuorenmaa, Hertta

Keywords

skills-based approach, employee engagement, talent management, skill development, lifelong learning, organizational flexibility

Other note

Citation

Permanent link to this item

https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:aalto-202504223350

Collections

[gradu] Kauppakorkeakoulu / BIZ