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TMI Standards

TMI standards and frameworks seek to not only reinforce contemporary HR thought and practice with the now, ever so critical tenets and concepts of Talent Management; but to also de-weed traditional Talent Management and establish a revolutionary new code of practice for the function. TMI knowledge body and frameworks have served to bring together the hitherto scattered wisdom, thoughts, and practices in Talent Management around the world, and organized all of it into a reliably definitive and universally applicable body of knowledge – one, which could guide and facilitate a more convenient, error-free, and swifter adoption of Talent Management into contemporary HR leadership, functional practice, consulting, and research.

  • The TMI Way

    TMI standards and frameworks draw from a research-backed belief that Talent Management has the characteristics of a “hyper-function”. These frameworks embody the TMI Way – the thought and act of integrating Talent Management into the very fabric of organizational HR practices. TMI Credentials and frameworks, hence help ingrain Talent Management as a core action point in all departments, cutting across functional boundaries. The TMI way, therefore, views Talent Management practice from the vantage point of “consciousness of value for the firm and society”. The Ecosystem, the Ethos, the Engine, the System, the Process, and the Practices of Talent Management are the SIX dynamic elements from the Talent Management consciousness embedded in an organization’s HR fabric and its leadership.

  • Going to the Roots

    In essence, the TMI standard-frameworks are the detailed heuristic projections of the defining TMI paradigm on Talent Management. They seek to make Talent Management rise above being a mere HR task-area and become as fundamental to organizations as any of their other business functions are - hence pushing Talent Management down deep toward the roots of organizations all along - linking them to the very purpose organizations exist for.

    TMI has two sets of standard-frameworks defining and underlying the two TMI families of credentials. The first set - the TMI Universal Knowledge Framework (TMI-UKF™) is connected to the TMI professional credentials TMP™, STMP™, GTML™, and the TMI-Wharton programs in Talent Management. Coded into the Talent Management Body of Knowledge (TMBoK™), the TMI-UKF™ spells out Talent Management knowledge areas and benchmarks to be deployed for assessing and validating promise, potential, proficiency and readiness of professionals for handling Talent Management roles and responsibilities in complex 21st century organizations, and the central idea of TMI-UKF™ is cross-functional knowledge centered on the ability to understand business and strategy - the roots of business.

    TMI-ETMS™, the other TMI standard-framework, is the cornerstone for the TMI–ETMS10™ and TMI–ETMS14™ enterprise-level credentials in Talent Management for enterprise HR systems and departments, desiring to be on the cutting edge of Talent Management thought and practice. The philosophy of treating Talent Management as an essential pan-organization consciousness and practicing it as a hyper-function cutting across departmental divides is core to the TMI–ETMS™ paradigm.

    If looked closely, the two TMI standard-frameworks serve to pluck Talent Management out of the functional silos of HR, and transform it not only into an eminently fundamental managerial and leadership responsibility, but also into a boardroom theme demanding critical strategic attention of top management.

The TMI Professional Standards

The TMI Universal Knowledge Framework (TMI-UKF™) is the cornerstone of the world’s first and the most authoritative body of knowledge on the Talent Management profession yet – the research-curated TMI Talent Management Body of Knowledge (TMBoK™). The TMI-UKF™ provides HR professionals a set of robust, empirically-tested, and comprehensive guidelines and benchmarks using which Talent Management can be embedded as a practice within the HR function in the organization. The TMI-UKF™ prescribes the structure of required professional knowledge and competence along which CHROs should ideally flesh out their program for enhancing their department’s Talent Management capabilities. The TMI-UKF™ is fundamental to all FOUR TMI Credentials – Talent Management Practitioner (TMP™), Senior Talent Management Practitioner (STMP™), Global Talent Management Leader (GTML™), and the TMI-Wharton programs in Talent Management. These certifications reaffirm to aspiring and growing Talent Management professionals the importance of acquiring knowledge essential for successful job performance; and for employers, they prove eminently reliable indicators of professional proficiency of applicants and incumbents.

In the TMI-UKF™, Talent Management expertise and knowledge has been grouped into TWO broad clusters of knowledge topics or areas – called the TMI-UKF™ Knowledge Lobes – The Foundational Knowledge lobe and the Functional Knowledge lobe. Among themselves, these two TMI-UKF™ Knowledge Lobes cover 18 topics of essential knowledge for Talent Management professionals. As may be obvious by now, the elements of the TMI-TMBoK™ have also been derived from the TMI-UKF™, and they establish the framework along which the TMI Certification exam system is cast. The TMI Handbook on Talent Management includes detailed treatment of the TMI-UKF™ and the TMI Talent Management Body of Knowledge.

The Foundational Lobe Knowledge Areas

  • FY-1Philosophy & Paradigms underlying Talent Management
  • FY-2Theoretical Frameworks of Talent Management
  • FY-3Ecosystem Architecture of Talent Management Practice
  • FY-4Technology Enablers for Talent Management
  • FY-5Functional Framework of Talent Management
  • FY-6Culture & Environment Connects with Talent Management

The Functional Lobe Knowledge Areas

  • FY-1Strategic & Tactical Talent Planning
  • FY-2Talent Systems Establishment & Management
  • FY-3Leader Development & Onboarding
  • FY-4Talent Requirements Assessment
  • FY-5Talent Status Evaluation & Measurement
  • FY-6Talent Spotting & Identification
  • FY-7Talent Breeding & Transformation
  • FY-8Talent Acquisition & Pipeline Management
  • FY-9Talent Performance & Career Management
  • FY-10Talent Engagement & Retention
  • FY-11Succession Planning & Talent Supply Management
  • FY-12Managing Talent Exit, Offboarding, & Outplacement

The TMI Common Body of Knowledge

The Universal Knowledge Framework on Talent Management – the TMI-UKF™ - developed after several stages of research and validations involving hundreds of Talent Management experts - is the backbone of the TMI Talent Management Body of Knowledge (TMBoK™) for human resource professionals and Talent Management practitioners. The TMI-TMBoK™ rigorously structures all knowledge dimensions that are widely recognized as profession–critical for Talent Management practitioners today - including essential knowledge of the generics in Talent Management concepts, principles, theories, tools, technologies, applications, and trends.


The 18 TMI-UKF™ Knowledge Lobe areas have been fleshed out into 23 Mandatory Knowledge Topics divided across three segments or parts as exhibited below:

  • PART A: Defining Concepts & Perspectives
  • Management, Business, & Talent Management In the 21st Century
  • Talent Management Imperatives for Organizations in the New Millennium
  • The Talent Management Ecosystem
  • Talent‐need Analysis Framework for Organizations
  • Framework for Talent Competence Assessment
  • PART B: Elements of Strategy & Leadership
  • Importance of Strategic Talent Management
  • Building Competitive Advantage Through Integrated Talent Management
  • Building Sustainable Talent Through Integrated Talent Management
  • Building the Talent Pipeline: Attracting and Recruiting the Best and Brightest
  • Facilitating Executive Onboarding
  • Identifying and Assessing High-Potential Talent
  • Developing Leadership Talent Through Structured Programs
  • Developing Leadership Talent Through Experiences
  • Managing Leadership Talent Pools
  • Making Leaders More Effective
  • PART C: Critical Focus Areas of Practice
  • Engaging Talents
  • Building Functional Expertise to Enhance Organizational Capability
  • Managing and Measuring Talent Management Effectiveness
  • Managing Talent In Global Organizations
  • Management of Talent Supplies in Global Organizations
  • Succession Planning in Talent-driven Organizations
  • Employee Performance Management in Talent-driven Organizations
  • Role of Technology in Talent Management

The exams of the TMP™, STMP™, and the GTML™ Credentials cover these topics in addition to six other topics based on industry cases. To know more about TMI certification exams, please visit the exam section on this website, or click here.

The TMI Enterprise Standards

The TMI–ETMS™ (TMI–ETMS™ Release 11.4.3 in current circulation) fulfills a long-standing need of a unified, internationally valid and pan-industry standards for Talent Management practice in organizations. The TMI–ETMS™ addresses 14 critical strategic, process, and environment dimensions and prescribes standards across nearly 100 parameters that impact metrics of Talent Management effectiveness in typical modern organizations.

Its rigor and coverage makes TMI–ETMS™ the world’s first and the only organized set of standards defining systems, processes, and practices for optimally managing talents. According to a TMI-CredForce report on Talent Management practices, the global industry lost more than $5.0 billion USD in the last five years because of causes linked to talent issues – wrong hiring; clogged talent pipelines; attrition, underperformance, information thefts, and ill-designed engagement programs. The report reinforced longstanding industry-view that rapidly rising knowledge-intensity of businesses across the board has forced organizations to move from workforce to talent consciousness. In most ways, the TMI–ETMS™ Release 11.4.3 is a forceful TMI argument for treating Talent Management as a hyper-function, and distributing its responsibility across departments.

Inspired by the TMI Way

The TMI Talent Management standards for enterprises also spring from the TMI Way. Organizations reporting complete compliance to these standards attain one of the two variants of the prestigious TMI–ETMS™ certifications.

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As the bedrock of these certifications, the TMI–ETMS™ standards-framework codes down the state-of-the-art in the conceptual, policy, systemic, procedural, and practice requirements for organizations to achieve Talent Management excellence. Boarding the TMI–ETMS™ may well be the first big step of an organization toward creating a proud new legacy of pursuing Talent Management excellence within their systems.


The 14-Junction TMI–ETMS™ Release 11.4.3

TMI–ETMS™ standards-framework is fleshed on a 14-junction backbone – covering all Talent Management elements and areas critical to sustained excellence in Talent Management practice of an organization’s HR fabric.

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Designed around the TMI philosophy of treating Talent Management as a hyper-business function in an organization - and the driving strategic component of the HR function at the same time, the TMI–ETMS™ standards-framework aims at enabling organizations fan Talent Management across as an enterprise-wide consciousness, breaking through the conventional functional barriers and making managers and department-heads accountable for managing talent effectively.

The 14 Junctions of the TMI System for Assurance of Talent Management Excellence in Enterprises (TMI–ETMS™)

  • TMI–ETMS™-1Strategic & Tactical Talent Planning
  • TMI–ETMS™-2Organization & Staffing of the Talent Management Department
  • TMI–ETMS™-3Leader Development & Onboarding
  • TMI–ETMS™-4Talent Requirements Assessment
  • TMI–ETMS™-5Talent Status Evaluation & Measurement
  • TMI–ETMS™-6Talent Spotting & Identification
  • TMI–ETMS™-7Talent Breeding & Transformation
  • TMI–ETMS™-8Talent Acquisition & Pipeline Management
  • TMI–ETMS™-9Talent Performance & Career Management
  • TMI–ETMS™-10Talent Engagement & Retention
  • TMI–ETMS™-11Succession Planning
  • TMI–ETMS™-12Managing Talent Exit, Off-boarding, & Outplacement
  • TMI–ETMS™-13Technology Ecosystem
  • TMI–ETMS™-14Work Culture, Environment, & Ethics

TMI PRIDE Driving TMI–ETMS™ Impacts

TMI–ETMS™ thrives on the landmark PRIDE philosophy and approach to help make following a set of world-class standards an organic habit and a reflex of an organizational system Compliance with the TMI–ETMS™ standards are established and evaluated along the PRIDEScan™ standards adherence assurance system along which, client organizations working toward TMI–ETMS™ are audited.

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The PRIDEScan™ system distinguishes the TMI–ETMS™ remarkably from all other standards by focusing on the depth and nature of an organization’s compliance with the TMI–ETMS™, the organization’s systemic determination to keep the compliance sustainable.

The FIVE PRIDE parameters determine how the TME drivers are embedded and adopted in an organization, hinges on the ingenious PRIDE heuristics - fleshed out on the backbone of PRACTICE; RELEVANCE, IMPACTS; DIFFUSIVITY & EVOLUTION. The TMI paradigms, standards and certifications are set for steady, swift spread across the world. The worldwide network of CredForce - the world’s largest provider of business, marketing and management expertise and services to certification bodies - has mounted a series of initiatives and programs to accelerate the growth of the TMI worldwide network. We actively look at partnering industry chambers, professional associations, institutions, policy makers and consulting firms.

To know more about how you or your organization can benefit from the TMI–ETMS™, please write to us at etms@tmi.org

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