By John Viktorin and Lee Downs
Succession planning doesn’t usually get much attention until someone leaves an organization but by then it’s too late. A small investment in succession planning today can preserve the health of your organization for the future.
The definition of succession planning is the identification and development of an individual, or a small pool of individuals, with the skills, attributes and experience to fill specific roles. In reality this is more like Replacement Planning—where companies look to replace individuals based on a never-changing org chart.
A fresh approach
We need a new approach to succession planning, one that aligns more closely with HR’s strategic role. One that doesn’t focus solely on the organization’s most senior roles and isn’t a secretive, top-down process.
We need to think of it as planning today to grow tomorrow. Succession planning is getting the right people with the right skills in the right roles at the right time. This requires a holistic, organization-wide process, which identifies future leadership and grooms a pool of employees to help the organization meet those needs.
Planning for the future
The size of the organization doesn’t matter, because both small family run businesses and large multinationals need to leverage a comprehensive succession planning process to secure the organization’s future and establish it as one that develops and rewards employees at all levels.
Eight keys to success
HR professionals need to focus on eight succession planning keys to ensure success.
- Senior leader sponsorship
- HR leadership
- Manager involvement and commitment
- Big-picture approach and alignment
- Competencies and assessments
- Supporting culture and initiatives
- Open and transparent communications
- Rigorous execution
From this it’s clear that succession planning isn’t something that only concerns HR and C-suite executives.
With a properly designed and executed succession planning process in place, your organization should be able to:
- Fill openings from within your talent pool.
- Show high-potential employees more than one opportunity for advancement.
- Showcase effective placements through individuals who have achieved success while staying in their roles longer.
- Illustrate that the time it takes to fill positions is shorter.
- Show bottom line impacts (e.g., profits, market confidence, etc.).
- See succession planning as top priority at the executive level.
Most of these success features can be measured through statistical analysis and surveys. HR professionals need to ensure there are metrics in place to measure the success of succession planning in their organization. In today’s business climate, it’s imperative to show how all HR initiatives impact ROI.
Success (and less stress) today and tomorrow
HRPA’s PD in a Box succession planning module provides a structured and thorough approach to succession planning.
As talent management pressures on our organizations grow—aging workforce, meeting diversity targets, maintaining organizational growth, flattening organizational structure—so will the pressure for effective succession planning.
Succession planning cannot be left to chance, nor is it something to be tackled on an as-needed basis. Only through proper planning and foresight can your organization’s succession planning process work to secure your organization’s success today and into the future.
Lee Downs and John Viktorin are partners in Amoeba Communications a consulting firm that creates communications that engage people and drive performance. They are the go-to team for leaders seeking high impact, high value solutions in four areas: organizational communications, change management, HR communications and leadership communications. You can reach Lee and John at www.engagecanada.com or by calling 416-535-3350.
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