In the last few days I have witnessed amazing performances from the Team GB cycling and rowing teams. Both teams have secured 9 Olympic medals, both have athlete and machine working in perfect harmony.

 I found myself asking the question as to what is the magic ingredient which has enabled such a high degree of success. Is it the technology or the talent? Could Team GB take any of the other Olympic riders on a GB bike and turn them into a gold medal rider? Or is it a perfectly blended combination of technology, talent and environment.

As a vendor of Talent Management software we have several roles to play. The first is to develop useful solutions that are desired and used by a range of customers to assist them in their talent initiatives. The second is to help shape requirements and advise clients very often on where to start first as ‘Talent Management’ is a broad definition and seems to be growing fast.

As technology is becoming more prolific, process silos are being removed and there is a shift towards flipping the model of HR on its head.

I was talking product strategy yesterday with a colleague and the subject shifted to the fact that many of the new innovations coming to market are actually old ideas.

Technology is an enabler in my opinion and it needs to serve a purpose, engage its user and deliver 'value' to ensure it is reused and adopted into your life. However it is really interesting to see how good ideas lacked mass market appeal the first time round due to the technology being unable to deliver the 'end user experience' in a compelling way.