Integrating a talent management approach to knowledge management: Are there benefits to be had?

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine how the principles of talent management (TM) can be leveraged to enhance an organization‟s knowledge management (KM) initiatives. Design/methodology/approach – This paper critically reviews the literature pertaining to the emerging concept of TM and specifically that which focuses upon „smart talent management‟ i.e. the fusion of TM and KM concepts. Findings – We find that the fusion of the two concepts holds promise but has so far only been considered by human resource scholars who have tended to examine how learning‟s from the field of KM can be leveraged to advance TM. We confront the issue in reverse and identify four KM concerns – identifying key knowledge workers, knowledge worker positioning, developing knowledge competencies, and preventing a knowledge loss crisis – which we argue can be advanced through the application of TM principles. Originality/value – The fusion of TM and KM has so far only been considered from a HR perspective. This paper examines the fusion of the two concepts from a KM perspective and details four specific KM concerns which can benefit from the integration of a TM approach.