Succesion Management

8/3/2019 Succesion Management

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ession planning can be defined as the procedure of identifying potential leaders in an organization to fill important

ions in the near future. It is important for any organizations to find the right people who will fill key positions.

nizations can be extremely selective when it comes to deciding on candidates for strategically significant and key

ions with great power and responsibility. Hence, they adopt an elaborate and comprehensive system of selection,

ng, grooming and orientation. It is imperative that strategic positions in any organization are filled with people who

a clear idea of what the organization stands for and who have the organizational aims in mind as they pilot the

pany.

e is no single model of succession planning since organizations can be vastly different in terms of size and strategy.

ever, succession planning as a strategic exercise, concerns itself with only a few and significant positions to the depth of

or three levels of management. The modern approach towards succession planning takes into account the needs of the

nization and the aspirations and desires of the employees to reach a plan that appeals to all concerned.

nizations may expect the following from a succession planning exercise:-

king the procedure of filling important strategic positions with candidates drawn from a wider pool allowing greater

ce.

ity to decide quickly on the ideal candidate.

tomized grooming and orientation of would-be successors by careful design of their work experiences, skills and

ies by proper training.

ating a talent pool in the organizations.

e past it was felt that the process of succession planning should be kept confidential. However, modern succession

ning procedures are transparent and internal jobs are increasingly advertised.

e of the activities which come under succession planning are:

ntification of potential successors

ening the talent pool from which potential successors are drawn by analyzing more people.

dy of the gaps and surpluses which have been discovered by the process of planning.


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dback on the actual exercise of selection and to verify if the selected individual has acquired the skills and qualities

ssary.

cession planning cannot function in isolation; it needs to be linked to other organizational process such as recruitment,

ng etc to be successful. The succession planning program needs constant inputs from the employee appraisal and

sment program to give a feed back on the status of the employees development. The succession planning must decide

e methods adopted for the cultivation of skills within the organization to meet requirements in the coming years. It

needs to finalize and implement development customized towards the requirement of every individual in the talent

.

ritical in any organization that the positions at the top are manned by people who are aware of the organizations

es, nature and strategy. In this regard, succession planning plays a vital role in guaranteeing that the critical positions

lled by people who have a hands-on experience and feel of the organization who will use their knowledge andrience in tandem with the organizations long term objectives and strategic goals.

ess and Practices

panies devise elaborate models to characterize their succession and development practices. Most reflect a cyclical

s of activities that include these fundamentals:

entify key roles for succession or replacement planning

fine the competencies and motivational profile required to undertake those roles

sess people against these criteria - with a future orientation

entify pools of talent that could potentially fill and perform highly in key roles

velop employees to be ready for advancement into key roles - primarily through the right set of experiences.

any companies, over the past several years, the emphasis has shifted from planning job assignments to development,

much greater focus on managing key experiences that are critical to growing global business leaders. North American

panies tend to be more active in this regard, followed by European and Latin American countries.


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Co, IBM and Nike are current examples of the so-called "game planning" approach to succession and talent

agement. In these and other companies annual reviews are supplemented with an ongoing series of discussions among

or leaders about who is ready to assume larger roles. Vacancies are anticipated and slates of names are prepared based

ghest potential and readiness for job moves. Organization realignments are viewed as critical windows of opportunity

eate development moves that will serve the greater good of the enterprise.

ssment is a key practice in effective succession planning. There is no widely accepted formula for evaluating the future

ntial of leaders, but there are many tools and approaches that continue to be used today, ranging from personality and

itive testing to team-based interviewing and simulations and other assessment center methods. Elliott Jaques and

rs have argued for the importance of focusing assessments narrowly on critical differentiators of future performance.

es developed a persuasive case for measuring candidates' ability to manage complexity, formulating a robust

ational definition of business intelligence.[4] The Cognitive Process Profile (CPP) psychometric is an example of a tool

in succession planning to measure candidates' ability to manage complexity according to Jaques' definition.

panies struggle to find practices that are effective and practical. It is clear leaders who rely on instinct and gut to make

motion decisions are often not effective. Research indicates that the most valid practices for assessment are those that

ve multiple methods and especially multiple raters [5] "Calibration meetings," composed of senior leaders can be quite

tive judging a slate of potential senior leaders with the right tools and facilitation.

organisations facing increasing complexity and uncertainty in their operating environments some suggest a move away

competence based approaches.[6] In a future that is increasingly hard to predict leaders will need to see opportunity

latility, spot patterns in complexity, find creative solutions to problems, keep in mind long term strategic goals for the

nisation and wider society, and hold onto uncertainty until the optimum time to make a decision.

ear to see that succession planning and development of future leaders does not exist in isolation - it needs to reflect the

pany's strategic objective and strategic goals. For any organization to implement an effective succession plan there are

mber of key issues that need to be considered:

e succession planning program must have the support and backing of the company's senior level management

cession planning must be part of an integrated HR process that includes training, development and performance

aisal

ntify what skills the organization will need in 5, 10 or 15 years


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tical positions must be identified and included in the Company's succession planning program

ntify high-performers that are almost ready to step into those critical positions

alyze the workforce and identify who will be eligible for retirement within the next five years

nagers need to identify the responsibilities, skills and competencies that will be needed by their replacements

ystem for communicating succession planning information to managers must be established

ystematic approach for identifying, nominating and selecting potential successors must be established

ckground information on potential successors, such as education, experience, skills, appraisals and potential should be

wed

e training and development requirements of potential successors needs to be determined

e skills of potential successors must be developed through work experiences, job rotation, projects and other

enging assignments

ystem for monitoring candidate's development plan progress by senior management should be established

ccession planning must include a system for providing feedback and encouragement to potential successors

cession planning is basically a "numbers game" that requires good organizational skills and the ability to pay attention

tails


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ally, the succession plan must belong "to the organization" and not to the HR department in order to make sure it has

ttention it deserves

ession planning is not something a well-run company can ignore because the consequences of not being prepared to

ce key personnel will have a major impact on an organization's ability to achieve its goals and strategic targets.

uccession planning process needs to be considered as part of the company's strategic planning process because it deals

projecting future changes by anticipating management vacancies and then determining how to meet these challenges.

w Does the Succession Process Work?

The best way for organizations to engage in a very effective succession planning process is to first develop their long

needs, goals and objectives. A clearly stated objective serves as a guide for future action. The organization must then

ify superior employees through job performance, often re-enforced through job rotation and additional

ng.Training and motivating these employees would offer the company a pool of groomed employees to choose from.

mployee Role Within the Process

Often, some organizations ignore the need and importance of assisting its employees to identify their own career paths.

rtheless, employees themselves must take their own steps to prepare themselves for possible promotion or rotational

ng from their current roles to a higher role within he organization.

vantages of Succession Planning

Often many individuals think of succession planning within the family business circles. The truth of the matter is that

ession planning is just as relevant to medium sized companies and corporate organizations as well. One of its benefits is

through succession planning process, the organization benefits from a well-trained, acculturated and motivated

oyee pipeline with all the advantages of mentorship and lineage.

Often, recruiting from the outside is time consuming, difficult and costly. It is easier and less costly for organizations to

and promote from their current employees. Employees promoted from within tend to be highly motivated and are

dy knowledgeable about the organizations future goals and objectives. Succession planning guarantees that all higher

lon management level positions within the organization would be filled when the need arises. Succession planning

res consistency with the organization's business, and saves companies the valuable time of recruiting new employees.


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advantages of Succession planning

There are some disadvantages attributed to succession planning despite its advantages. Succession planning decreases

umber of pools from which new talent is identified and recruited into management. There is also the ever-present

bility that prospects groomed for succession will be hired away by other organizations, who thus reap not only the

pect but also all the training and grooming provided by his former employer.

hat Is the Future for Succession Planning?

Many more companies may be moving in the direction of succession planning. It's advantages far outweigh it's

vantages. In this global economy, many companies are cutting back from recruiting new employees. The cost reduction

ed by succession planning is an important factor to many companies trying to survive the global recession. Succession

ning helps create continuity in company leadership and management. This is a very vital issue, which directly aids and

orts companies in their pursuit of their articulated goals and objectives.

Succesion Management

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