Managing Officer Talent in the Army: A Study of the US System

US Army talent management system indicates reliance on basic human capital theory and the premise that all officers have distinctive talents that need to be honed for senior officer billets which have different and distinctive talent requirements. Research indicates that the Indian Army neither has talent data nor a talent management system that this framework requires. Therefore, it is forced to adopt a one-size-fits-all strategy for managing officers that is primarily centred on developing proficiency only in warfare. While this strategy works well for creating young officers, it is rather inadequate in producing senior officers, whose functions become less operational as they ascend in rank. Several recommendations have been made in this article to address these issues. Recommendations are not allinclusive, however, they can serve as the foundation for a comprehensive revamp of the HR system that would be constructed around the talent management framework that has been presented.