Processes associated with globalisation have changed the traditional model of hiring and managing a company to, among other things, searching for experts in a specific field who are located anywhere in the world. This phenomenon, referred to by Younger and Smallwood (2016) as agile talent, highlights the importance of an employee's talent, their specific competencies required for the job. Talent management has become one of the core strategies through which an organisation - referred to as branded talent developers (Ulrich, Younger, Smallwood, 2007) - can remain competitive in the marketplace in the era of the 'war for talent' (Younger, Smallwood, Ulrich, 2007, p. 21).
Employee talent is understood in very different ways. A systematic review of definitions and theoretical concepts of the concept has been carried out by Gallardo-Gallardo, Dries, Gonzales-Cruz (2013). One of the more interesting concepts that emerged from the authors' practical experience is that of Ulrich and Smallwood (2004, 2012), where employee talent is understood as the result of competence, commitment and contribution - talent = competence × commitment × contribution.
Competence refers to the knowledge, skills and values that are useful in performing a job. However, if an employee is competent but not engaged, he or she is not effective. A competent and committed employee was considered to be a talented employee. However, Ulrich and Smallwood note that competence (ability to do the job) and commitment (willingness to do the job) without the employee discovering the purpose and meaning of the work (contribution) does not allow one to speak of talent. Employees should feel that their personal needs are met through active participation in the organisation and that the time they devote to the organisation is meaningful. The three components of talent - competence, commitment and contribution - are multiplicative, not additive. A talented employee must therefore be able, willing and able to see meaning, which is a challenge for management (Ulrich, & Smallwood, 2012, p. 60; 2004). An employee who feels that the organisation makes use of his or her strengths and competencies is satisfied at work. Therefore, developing and incorporating the talents of employees into management is key to increasing employee satisfaction and productivity. Motivation based on financial rewards is no longer sufficient for effective team management. People need opportunities to show initiative and creativity. In addition, the younger generation of employees (millennials) are used to being independent, quick to find the information they need, confident, flexible and critical of the world around them. The challenge for today's managers is therefore not simply to motivate employees, but to encourage their self-expression so that they can make the most of their talents and achieve results of which they themselves would be proud (Maruska, & Perry, 2013a).
Talent management fosters attachment and rootedness in the company and a willingness to make sacrifices to achieve the company's goals (Narayanan, 2016).In addition, employees with high potential have a better perception of relationships within the company (Gelens, Hofmans, Dries, & Pepermans, 2014). The development of employees' talents and their use within the organisation leads to an increase in their job satisfaction (Maruska, & Perry, 2013b).
Previous research suggests that one's work functioning and leadership style can both positively and negatively impact life satisfaction (Erdogan, Bauer, Truxillo, & Mansfield, 2012; Iverson & Maguire, 2000). This is consistent with spillover theory, which proposes a mutual interaction between job satisfaction and life satisfaction (Bakker, Demerouti, Dollard, 2008; Bowling et al., 2010; Schultz et al., 2004). Life satisfaction is the overall perception of an individual's life, taking into account their talents, productivity, and ability to cope with everyday stressors (Dinh et al., 2022). It is influenced by satisfaction in various areas of life, such as family, friendships, work, and leisure (Pavot and Diener, 2008). Education and the quality of interpersonal relationships are among the determinants of subjective life satisfaction. According to Salinas-Jimenez, Artes & Salinas-Jimenez (2011), higher education is associated with higher life satisfaction. Pieh et al. (2020) found that the quality of interpersonal relationships also plays a role in determining life satisfaction. Attention is also drawn to gender differences in the predictors of life satisfaction. According to Joshanloo's research (2018), socio-political, employment-related, and education-related variables are generally more important in determining life satisfaction in men, while variables related to marital status and interpersonal relationships are more important in women.
Oishi, Diener, Lucas, and Suh (2009) conducted a cross-cultural study on the determinants of life satisfaction. In Study 1, which involved 39 nations and N = 54,446 participants, they found that financial satisfaction was more strongly associated with life satisfaction in poorer nations, whereas home life satisfaction was more strongly related to life satisfaction in wealthier nations. Study 2 (39 nations, N = 6,782) found that satisfaction with esteem needs, such as the self and freedom, predicted global life satisfaction more strongly among individuals in individualist nations than those in collectivist nations. These studies suggest the need for research that accounts for both culture-specific and universal predictors of life satisfaction.
Assessing the relationship between employee talent and life satisfaction is an interesting topic, particularly as there is a lack of research in this area. Previous studies have focused on talent in relation to work-life balance (see Deery & Jago, 2015; Wahyudi et al., 2022) or have examined the link between talent and job satisfaction (see Barkhuizen & Gumede, 2021; Kamal & Lukman, 2017).
The research aimed to establish a relationship between employee team members' talent in small and medium-sized companies and their overall life satisfaction, rather than job satisfaction as in previous studies. Furthermore, this study aims to investigate cross-cultural differences in the relationship between talent dimensions and life satisfaction among employees from Belgium, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Poland, and the United Kingdom. The study also aims to explore potential differences in the variables studied among team members from these countries.
The study posited several hypotheses.
H1: There are statistically significant differences in talent and life satisfaction dimensions among employees and team members from Belgium, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Poland, and the UK.
H2: The level of life satisfaction among employees and team members of small and medium-sized companies is positively correlated with their level of talent.
H3: The correlation pattern between talent dimensions and life satisfaction varies among Belgium, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Poland, and the UK.