{"id":9231,"date":"2026-04-16T08:55:21","date_gmt":"2026-04-16T08:55:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/besthrpractices.org\/?p=9231"},"modified":"2026-04-16T10:13:02","modified_gmt":"2026-04-16T10:13:02","slug":"the-most-expensive-mistake-of-smes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/besthrpractices.org\/pl\/the-most-expensive-mistake-of-smes\/","title":{"rendered":"The most expensive mistake of SMEs?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The most expensive mistake of SMEs?<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\u00a05 questions that can save your company!<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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In Hungary, most small businesses still do not deal with talent management. According to a study examining 2,094 organizations in the V4 countries, nearly 74% of companies in the region do not have a real talent management system. The consequence: weaker succession, higher turnover, and an organization exposed to external effects. How can talent management be implemented in an SME?<\/strong><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Why has talent management become a strategic issue for SMEs right now?<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Domestic and regional experiences clearly show some typical breaking points where identifying and retaining talent can no longer be handled in an ad hoc way.<\/p>

Up to a company size of around 20\u201330 employees, the informal system still works: the leader knows everyone, personally observes their development, and intuitively knows who is suitable for greater independence and responsibility.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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At this company size, however, the first serious signs typically appear: the best employees leave because they do not see opportunities for advancement; the leader spends more and more time repeatedly onboarding new people; and filling critical positions becomes increasingly expensive and slower.<\/p>

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Between 30\u201350 employees, the organization already operates with mid-sized company complexity, but often still underestimates the extra effort required for talented employees\u2014typically without formalized processes, transparent development paths, and regular calibration discussions.<\/p>

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The V4 empirical study highlights that talent management is one of the most neglected HR areas in the region\u2014while skill shortages, the migration of young talent, and high turnover in critical roles are increasingly becoming direct business risks.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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\u201cTalent management maturity mirror\u201d for small businesses \u2013 in five questions<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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The strategic maturity of talent management in a small business context can be well captured with five relatively simple questions. An experienced business leader can answer these in a few minutes\u2014and this self-assessment alone can already be a valuable starting point, as it can initiate change in the organization.<\/p>

If you lead a small business, we recommend that you ask yourself the following five questions and answer them honestly:<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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Do you know which positions are critical in your organization\u2014and who could fill them tomorrow if needed?<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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This is not about a long succession plan, but a simple question: if the head of sales, the best technician, or the key person in customer service resigned tomorrow, what would you do? If the answer is \u201cwe would look for someone externally,\u201d this already indicates the lack of internal backup talent.<\/p>

Research shows that in companies where internal successors are identified for at least the five most critical positions, replacement costs are significantly lower and time to fill is shorter.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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Do your employees have equal opportunities for development\u2014or only those who are more \u201cvisible\u201d?<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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One of the most common SME traps is that development opportunities (training, interesting projects, greater responsibility) are distributed informally, based on the leader\u2019s subjective preferences. This is not only unfair, but also a poor business decision, because a lot of hidden potential remains unused in the organization.<\/p>

A Polish hospitality case study from the Best HRM Solutions in V4 countries project confirms this. Many employees had significant leadership potential, which was simply never used\u2014until an attentive HR director began to systematically observe employees\u2019 daily work and behavior and uncover their potential.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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Is there a shared understanding of what \u201ctalent\u201d means in your company and how it should be developed? In other words, is there a clear set of criteria for development?<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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If different leaders define talent differently, it undermines the credibility of the whole system. There is no need for a complex competency model: it is enough to define in a few sentences which skills you look for (e.g., initiative, handling difficult situations, supporting colleagues), and what counts as advancement and development (shadowing, mentoring, own project, new role, salary increase, etc.). This creates a unified framework and transparency, without which development decisions can seem arbitrary.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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Do you have regular one-on-one conversations with employees\u2014beyond performance evaluation meetings?<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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According to the V4 research, in many organizations career conversations happen unevenly and in an ad hoc way\u2014if they happen at all. However, large-scale studies show that continuous dialogue and feedback are among the simplest and most cost-effective retention tools.<\/p>

The format also matters: instead of closed questions like \u201care you satisfied?\u201d, it is worth using open questions such as:<\/p>