The development and management of talent are, from my point of view, the main facilitators for generating value in any company. Once it has been guaranteed that the product or service has the quality and safety expected by customers and users, it is when the training, the motivation and the proactivity of human resources lead to the generation of social and economic benefits on the part of the companies and organizations. This 'driver' effect of talent, which, based on an excellent product or service, leads to the desirable and innovative behavior of the business, also ensures its continuous transformation and the achievement of measurable business results.

However, the challenge is to generate and maintain a potential of personal talent that reaches -at least- the demand of a productive sector and that has the desired profiles. To face this challenge, it is necessary to connect supply and demand of human resources with skills and abilities not only expected by the current or future market, but also with the potential to generate wealth in the territory where this talent is produced/residing, becoming even exportable and transferable.

All the above is not different in the companies of Information Technology (IT) and/or Tourism. In fact, perhaps the factor that can limit this conjunction of the two sectors that have better supported the economic vicissitudes, is precisely the absence of the talent necessary to face the continuity and improvement of those positive results.

For all these reasons Turistec, as a cluster that brings together IT and Tourism, has proposed to collaborate with our partners and other interested parties (such as the administration, universities, vocational training centers and University-Business foundations) in the development and  management of Talent.

Turistec's first milestone in that task has been the recent creation of a working group with the same name, which I have the honor and responsibility to coordinate. Its main mission will be to determine the needs and profiles of human resources specialized in IT within the tourism sector, as well as propose and implement actions that facilitate the generation of such talent.

Obviously, this mission will be deployed through objectives that include identifying the specialized knowledge needs of the cluster's associates and carrying out a talent development action plan. And all this in collaboration with public and private entities responsible for regulated training (schools, institutes, universities, etc.), the administrations that regulate them and companies in the tourism sector. But like any plan, if it is not done, it remains a mere set of good intentions. Due to this, the working group has proposed not only to influence the supply and demand of talent, but also to develop it properly. Thus, various actions will be proposed that involve Turistec's associates in a differentiated training offer, in order to repositionate current human resources and also generate new high-level professionals in IT and Tourism. Thereby, within the plan of actions of the working group include, among others, the development of university postgraduate courses, support university degrees specialized in IT and Tourism and to develop specialized seminars in IT.

With the same importance as the development of talent, the capture of the same is the most urgent priority of the working group, and therefore several activities are carried out to enhance the practices of the company and the employability of students from vocational training in the branches of interest for the cluster (basically in IT), as well as in the empowerment of dual training.

In this way Turistec can become, among other functions, a "hub" of connection between supply and demand of talent in IT and Tourism... but it must also be a major player in the development of training offer in this specialized field. Consequently, our cluster must not only anticipate the more than probable insufficient supply of talent and specialized training absence, but lead collaboratively, and in line with the current reality of human resources, actions aligned with the cluster strategy. Of course with the support of educational institutions, the administration and, obviously, our associates. These actions should be implemented in an agile and flexible manner, but without losing sight of the long-term horizon. In short, Turistec wants to contribute to the human resources of our associates being the best, with the specialized abilities and skills, in a globalized, technological world and in a sector as important as Tourism.

Carlos Juiz

Eurekatourism⁺ Vice president
Coordinator Training and Talent Development Workgroup

More information at Turistec website (Spanish).

Event date: 28/03/2018

Publication date: Wed Mar 28 15:31:00 CEST 2018