Firms from emerging markets are constantly looking for additional competitive advantages, a source of organizational growth, and possibilities for value creation in a global context. Scullion et al. (2010) and Scullion and Collings (2011) argue that talent management (TM) has become very important in firms' global operations. There is a growing recognition that a firm's success mainly depends on, among other factors, human resource management (HRM) (Tarique and Schuler 2010) and managerial and professional talent as key resources for companies in the internationalization process (Farndale et al. 2010). It is generally recognized that the complexity of TM in MNCs is higher than in domestic firms due to the more demanding skill sets required by MNCs to create value in supporting organizational growth. Beechler and Woodward (2009) identify four main factors that create an environment that promotes a war for talent and that impact on TM characteristics at the global and national level: global demographic and economic trends; an increase of mobility of people and organizations; transformation in the business environment; and the growing diversity in workforce skills and cultures. Creelman (2004) has defined TM as the process of attracting, recruiting, and retaining talented employees, whereas Chuai et al. (2008) associate TM with activities that include incorporating new knowledge and doing things more quickly and efficiently for organizational growth. For some authors, TM is a mindset to ensure that all employees perform to the best of their potential (Buckingham and Vosburgh 2001; Walker and Larocco 2002). At this point we see the importance of identifying a role for TM in both value creation and a firm's performance results. We use the Russian context due to the fact that TM in Russian companies is not widespread, though firms have become important players in the global market due to an increased involvement in internationalization (Panibratov 2012). Based on this idea, I have formulated the following research questions that guided me in my empirical research: 1. What are the specific TM practices implemented in Russian companies? 2. Is the role of TM in Russian firms more strategic or more operational? 3. How does TM influence a firm's performance in the Russian context?
