I’m back from Chicago and leading a panel discussion at the Wells Fargo Retail Summit.  The third year in a row to be invited, I’ve had the opportunity to get a sense of these business leaders and what’s important to them.  And it struck me that although we explored three distinct and important topics on this year’s panel, by far the one that generated the most dialogue and questions from the audience was… Talent.

Talent retention, attraction, sourcing.  Getting creative and innovative.  Morale.  Career pathing.  Putting people in stretch roles.  Alternate sources of talent.  Hiring for a desire to learn rather than mere skill set.  Paying attention to, and looking for, meaningful ways for team members to connect and bond.

Sound familiar?

The last 2+ years — and this tight talent market — has shown us that necessity really is the mother of invention.

I’d like to suggest that you keep at it.

Keep inventing, keep innovating.

Keep looking for efficiencies and ways to do things better.

In all areas of your business.