Title: Talent management: a systematic review and future prospects

Authors: Anthony McDonnell; David G. Collings; Kamel Mellahi; Randall Schuler

Addresses: Queen's Management School, Queen's University Belfast, 185 Stranmillis Road, Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK ' Dublin City University Business School, Dublin City University, Dublin 9, Ireland ' Warwick Business School, The University of Warwick, Coventry, UK ' School of Management and Labor Relations, Rutgers University, Piscataway, New Jersey, USA

Abstract: This paper employs a systematic and comprehensive review to trace the evolution of talent management scholarship and propose a research agenda to move the field forward. Two primary streams of literature dominate: the management of high performers and high potentials, and the identification of strategic positions and talent management systems. The topic of global talent management has received significant attention; however, much of this literature tends to incorporate the two streams heretofore identified but on a global scale. The review also demonstrates that there has been limited attention placed on individual talents as the unit of analysis. Early criticisms of the disjointed nature of the field remain and we call for greater clarity around the conceptual boundaries of talent management. Our analysis highlights that most papers draw, to some extent, on primary research. There is however considerable need and scope for more comprehensive and nuanced methodological approaches.

Keywords: talent management; literature review; high potential; global talent; HRM; human resource management; stars; individual talents.

DOI: 10.1504/EJIM.2017.081253

European Journal of International Management, 2017 Vol.11 No.1, pp.86 - 128

Received: 29 Nov 2014
Accepted: 26 Aug 2015
Published online: 01 Jan 2017 *

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