Global Talent Management at Novartis Novartis is one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world that spans across 140 countries. Daniel Vasella, CEO, has transformed Novartis into a 100% healthcare company by ridding the company of its specialty chemicals business. By doing so, Novartis became the second largest producer of generic drugs. Vasella reconstructed the company’s approach towards global talent management since the previous approach lacked regular performance review, global objectives, and incentive based pays as a deterrent of motivation. Vasella implemented a universal performance management system and new culture, which is based on candor, performance, and accountability. The key issue involves contradictions with Novartis’s past culture and Vasella’s new culture. The new list of values and behaviors lacks cultural sensitivity and does not reflect the culture that has developed at Novartis. Vasella must implement a plan that includes values and behaviors that are adaptable and based on local cultures to minimize ethnocentrism. Through contingency management, this goal may be achieved because this concept uses management tools and techniques in a situational appropriate behavior, which will avoid the one-best-way mentality. Vasella’s new list of values and behaviors may include: be productive, be innovative, be proactive, be accountable, and be respectful. Top performing companies are more likely to have performance-based rewards, so Vasella should definitely stick to pay for performance but should issue a new rating system that is less rigid. Manager training along with Organization and Talent Review must be intact to ensure that internal recruiting is possible, which will boost pay for performance. One single universal system, like Vasella’s current approach, will not serve every culture, such as China. The new system must be flexible in order to able to be implemented into cultures like China, who have been unhappy with the universal system in the past.