3 Vital Questions for Succession Planning Success…

No matter the size of an organization one of the most critical pieces to a company’s success is getting the “right” people on the team. We are in an economic climate where it’s essential to do more with less.   So when you are hiring with succession planning in mind, it’s critical to have a balance of both long and short term objectives in hiring.

Being in the recruiting business the past 17 years I’ve noticed an emerging trend recently where applicants are not only being evaluated for their ability to do the functions of the job today, but are also evaluated on the potential to perform the next job “up” within an organization. Many of our clients are expecting growth over the next several years and are hiring with this growth in mind.  In a day and age where a good portion of the workforce is nearing retirement, having the depth organizationally is vital. As these employees retire, so do their skills and knowledge about an industry. Another important factor to consider is what cultural or leadership dynamic these people bring to the organization. I think there are a couple of key questions that you need to ask before beginning the acquisition process. How companies are positioned to address Industry emerging trends will determine future growth success. The Training and Development programs that organizations offer will be paramount to a healthy company.y.

Where are the biggest gaps in the organization and what skills/leadership will be leaving the organization in the next 3-5 years?
It seems that in every organization there are one or two areas where if one or two people leave it would be devastating to the success of meeting deadlines. I’ve also seen the impact in how an organization struggles when leaders are lost who have been key stakeholders in building the culture. This is devastating to productivity, so it’s important to identify these areas. Having set process and programs in place to ensure the appropriate knowledge transfer will take place will be the lifeline to a healthy organization. This is not an easy task at times in an environment where resources and budgets are tight. This is where cross-functional training and rotational programs can help create depth in your organization.

What are the emerging trends in our industry and how are we positioned to address those (talentwise)?
With the technology that’s available in the world today, it’s getting easier to predict trends and buying behaviors from both current and potential customers. With this in mind it’s important to conduct a sanity check of how your talent is positioned to perform with these emerging trends, putting a greater focus on hiring for adaptability and/or flexibility through their past experience. Has this person taken on more responsibility every year or two? Have they worked in 2-3 different industries and made a significant difference?

What Training and Development programs do we OR could we offer to shorten the gap in succession planning?
In a day and age where technology and markets change rapidly, skills can be become easily outdated. While building your talent pipeline from within, it’s critical to offer continuing education for leadership intelligence and skill enhancement. In larger organizations, I’ve seen Leadership Rotational programs have great success with allowing employees to get a broad diversity of functional skills and in some cases an opportunity to work across different industries, while in smaller organizations providing “cross training” opportunities. This could add value to provide an opportunity to evaluate performance and increase depth across functions.

In summary, Succession Planning will continue to be paramount to the success of an organization. Being realistic with organizational gaps and forecasting market trends will be key ingredients in formulating the answers to the 3 Vital Success Planning Questions.