4. Conclusion
The main contribution of our paper is to twin for the first time ideas about global talent management with the emerging international employee category of SIEs. Neither companies nor academics have yet given due consideration to SIEs, although they represent a significant part of the international talent pool. This is a missed opportunity. Internationally-operating organizations and SIEs share common interests, which proactive corporate management of this source of scarce talent could help foster. Such management would serve both organization and SIE, helping the former more effectively manage shortages in human capital and the latter to further their careers. Our discussion provides guidance to practitioners on how to include SIEs throughout four functional areas or general activities of talent management. It also suggests future research possibilities to academics, pointing to fields worthy of exploration. There are some limitations to our paper: the two fields of global talent management and talent management are both relatively new and still developing. Therefore, much is in flux within each field, adding uncertainty to our discussion and suggestions. The yet nascent conceptual foundations of both fields also increase these uncertainties. Still, it is important for the further development and integration of both fields to put a first stake in the ground and start investigating the management of SIE talent. The predominant picture of SIEs in past research has been one of independent self-serving agents in charge of their international careers, with little emphasis on how SIEs and organizations can purposefully work together to realize their respective goals. More research is needed to explore how this collaboration can effectively take place within the various functional activities of GTM. In addition, as mentioned in our discussion of SIE development, alignment, and movement across national boundaries, research should examine how SIEs initially identified and hired within host country labor markets can eventually become AEs in future international assignments for the company, thus becoming longer-lasting sources of talent for multinational organizations. With this initial contribution on SIEs within the GTM agenda, we call for further conceptual development as well as empirical qualitative and quantitative research to increase our understanding of SIEs as an important and unique source of talent for organizations competing in the global economy.
