Contextual factors shaping the perception of talent and the motives for adoption of inclusive talent management strategy : A multilevel mixed method single case study.

Sammanfattning: Purpose – of this study was to explore the institutional contextual factors that influence the organizational operations and their choice of talent management strategy with specific focus on inclusive talent management. The study is based on a case study of the Region Dalarna. The choice of case study was motivated by the ignorance of the contextual consideration of public sector organizations, within the talent management discourse. The researchers of this paper believe that the main findings contribute to the research field. Delimitations – of this study has been set to a single case study of Region Dalarna, a public sector organization where the healthcare operation within the organization and the employees within the HR department have been chosen as representative factors for the organizational perspective, along with the policy documents.       Design/methodology/approach – of this paper is a mixed-method approach, specifically when it comes to data collection and analysis. The secondary data, including organizational documents were analyzed with the WPR method and served as a foundation for collection of the primary data. In turn, the primary data was collected with the help of the dialogical interviews and analyzed through thematic analysis technique. Also, the theoretical framework in this research was based on already existing literature in the field. Findings – the organization’s operations and its choice of talent management strategy are influenced by multiple external and internal parties on macro, meso and micro levels. Some of them are politicians, board members, third parties and employees themselves. In addition, the researchers identified a shared perception of talent within the organization and factors that influence it. Also, the authors were able to track already implemented inclusive TM strategies within the organization’s operations as well as identify the challenges that prevent the further adoption of this approach. Practical implications – this paper can serve as a framework for other organizations in order to identify the influencing factors that impact their performance. The insights of this paper address the further development of Dalarna Region, which makes it valuable for the local community. Originality/value – the use of mixed methods in the data collection and analysis enabled researchers to confirm their findings as well as to identify the potential conflicts in the organizational context.