With the impending exodus of Baby Boomer employees, and the need to stay current with rapid
technological advances, it is important, now more than ever, to develop employees in order to
prepare them for key positions in the organization. First identified in a 1997 McKinsey study,
The War for Talent is upon us, and we must fight for it. Keeping our employees developed and
engaged is the key. In fact, feedback from a 2012 Workplace of Choice survey at General Motors
drove the organization to place special attention in 2013 on enterprise-wide actions. These
actions included the development of core values, closing employee engagement gaps and building
effective career development resources for global employees. Recent focus has included the
communication of GM’s core values, further development of global career development resources,
conducting a second (2014) Workplace of Choice global employees survey to measure and
manage progress, and continuing support of women advancement programs. This article addresses
how GM is providing innovative career development resources to more than 70,000 early,
mid and late career employees at nearly 400 locations on six continents to recruit and retain the
world’s best talent.