Integrating Talent Management and Public Service Innovation through an Innovation Pool: A Conceptual Model in the Illustrative Context of the Regional Civil Service Agency of South Sulawesi Province

Digital transformation, rising public expectations and increasingly complex public problems require local governments to develop a competent, adaptive, collaborative and innovative Indonesian State Civil Apparatus (ASN) workforce. Talent management in the public sector therefore needs to move beyond staffing, succession and competency development towards identifying and mobilising individual capabilities to address organisational challenges, foster innovation and create public value. This article develops a conceptual model that integrates ASN talent management with public service innovation, using the Regional Civil Service Agency of South Sulawesi Province as an illustrative context. It adopts a qualitative, context sensitive conceptual model development design, drawing on an integrative literature review, an analysis of ASN talent management policies and a synthesis of four perspectives: strategic talent management, dynamic capabilities, public service motivation and public sector innovation. The resulting model comprises five interrelated dimensions: evidence-based talent mapping; innovation-oriented competency development; strategic talent placement and mobility; innovation leadership and collaborative culture; and evaluation of public service impacts. Its principal conceptual contribution is the innovation pool, a mechanism linking the talent pool to public service problem-solving by mobilising personnel according to the competency requirements of organisational innovation priorities. Implementation is supported by integrated personnel data, merit-based governance, transformational leadership, digitalisation and organisational learning. The model offers a strategic framework for aligning talent management and public service innovation to translate ASN capabilities into public value. As the literature was selected purposively rather than through a systematic review, empirical research is needed to assess the model's relevance, feasibility and applicability across different local government settings.