Want to be a leader? Beef up your talent management!

In these tough economic times, the smart companies are re-examining every nut and bolt of the business, looking for ways to do more with less, and do what they do better.

One area you might want to consider is talent management, and by that I don’t mean just buying a piece of software and sitting back while the computer does the work.

But that’s what a lot of companies are doing, according to a new survey by The Hackett Group. The survey found that companies that really succeed—higher earnings, higher net profits, and higher returns on assets—are paying attention to talent management.

The firm also found that too many people say they are paying attention to the issue, but often just buy some off-the-shelf evaluation software tool, and don’t bother with refining processes or working with the company’s culture and organization, the other two key components.

So how well does your company manage its talent?