Talent Risk is Real, Measurable, and Manageable

A common misconception I often find myself debunking is that risks related to “the people part” of business are somehow less quantifiable and less manageable than other types of business risk. 

They’re not. 

At the Steve Trautman Co., we’ve spent the past 30+ years helping business leaders replace gut feel with data when it comes to managing talent. We’ve proven that talent risk—if left unmanaged—can quietly undermine strategy, delay execution, stall transformations, and cost millions in productivity, culture, and opportunity. 

But here's the good news: these risks can be identified, prioritized, and mitigated—often faster and more clearly than you’d think. We bring the same structure and rigor to workforce risk that you’d expect from your financial or operational planning. 

So what are we really talking about when we say “talent risk”? Below are just a few of the real, operational, and measurable risks that our clients have faced—and solved—using the right tools and support. If even a few of these are keeping you up at night, it’s time to take a closer look at your workforce strategy. 

Measurable, Manageable Talent Risks: 

• Losing an employee with unique knowledge—slowing delivery, hurting the customer experience, and weakening competitive advantage 

• Lack of role clarity, leading to infighting, inconsistent results, and rework 

• Burnout risk for critical employees with no backups 

• Losing high performers because they don’t see a clear path for growth 

• Losing next-gen employees stuck “shadowing” experts without ever gaining mastery 

• Too many “experts” pulling in different directions with no agreed-upon standard 

• Too many specialists—not enough flexible players to shift with demand 

• Long ramp-up time after offshore or contractor turnover 

• New hires taking too long to contribute due to inefficient onboarding 

• Losing revenue because the right talent isn’t available at the right time 

• Losing high-quality talent post-acquisition who don’t see where they fit in 

• Retaining poor performers post-acquisition who lack alternatives 

• Overspending on broad-based training that doesn’t match real gaps or priorities 

• Critical legacy knowledge disappearing during a system or process change 

• Outsourcing vital work without retaining the know-how internally 

• Underutilized team members who are disengaged or misaligned 

• Cutting headcount without a clear view of what work will be dropped or reallocated 

• Reorganizations that introduce more confusion than clarity 

• Moving SMEs during a reorg and watching productivity nosedive 

• Failure to redefine the “new normal” after a change—causing poor prioritization 

• Vague culture change efforts with no shared vision of the future state 

• Over-reliance on expensive contractors without defined expectations 

• The wrong “expert” passing on habits that don’t meet current standards 

If you recognize any of these, you’re not alone. These are the kinds of problems we solve every day with our clients—from Fortune 500s to fast-growing firms navigating rapid change. The key is not to accept these risks as inevitable. They’re not. 

They’re manageable. They’re measurable. And we have the tools to help you fix them. 

We work alongside leadership and managers to bring clarity to what your people do, where the gaps are, and what needs to change so you can execute with confidence. 

Whether you’re integrating AI into your work teams, restructuring your organization, rolling out a major transformation, navigating a merger or acquisition, managing key talent departures, or addressing workforce gaps, we create the roadmap from planning to the elusive “done.”