Milkround News, 17 February 2009
Graduates can still expect to receive on-the-job training and promotion as firms are warned not to cut back on staff development during a recession.

The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) has found that despite the downturn, three quarters of organisations it spoke to for a report have not changed their talent strategy.

The War on Talent? is the first in a two part series looking specifically at talent management in a downturn. It found tlanet strategies have been revisited, reworked and streamlined to improve their cost effectiveness.

Although organisation are increasingly looking for internal options to retain talent, it also means jobseeking graduates can look forward to more opportunities for promotion as firms once employed as firms focus on essential development.

Claire McCartney, Organisation and Resourcing Adviser at the CIPD said: "It is essential that organisations avoid knee-jerk reactions and cost-cutting in the very areas that will make the biggest difference. Now is not the time to halt employee development nor is it the time to postpone or scale back talent management strategies. However, more cost effective solutions need to be found as return on investment will come under greater scrutiny.

"Managing, developing and motivating talented employees is even more important because it is the one thing that can differentiate organisations and ensure that they not only survive the short-term but thrive in the long term."