Talent Management Fundamental to Sustainability
Duke Energy’s future success largely depends on the quality and skills of our workforce. As veteran employees prepare for retirement, we’re planning for our future workforce — with skills that align with evolving business strategies.
As the table indicates, younger employees (“Generation X” and “Millennials”) are a growing portion of our workforce — from 32 percent in 2009 to 36 percent in 2010.
As the “Baby Boomers” move into retirement, we must continue to attract high-quality talent and transfer institutional knowledge to a new generation. To preserve our talent advantage, we are:
- Identifying needs for new skills in areas like smart grid, fleet modernization and renewable energy, as well as fundamental skills essential to keeping the lights on for our customers
- Forecasting retirements to identify future talent needs and risk of critical-knowledge gaps
- Developing a talent pipeline through strategic hiring and sourcing programs, such as cooperative and intern positions
- Continuing to partner with universities and technical colleges on energy- related training
- Offering on-the-job training and other development opportunities, including rotational programs for early-career professionals
- Strengthening supervisory effectiveness with an enhanced curriculum for first-time supervisors
- Using succession planning to identify and develop talent to fill key leadership positions
- Benchmarking regularly to make sure compensation and benefits are competitive with similar companies
- Better aligning pay with performance through an improved performance management process.