Many of our clients express the same great concern to us – that there is a huge gap between their leaders and the next layer of staff. This particularly raises its head when a leader either takes extended unplanned leave, resigns, or is seconded to another position. There is no one within the organisation ready enough to step into the role, and the process to recruit and fill the position can take months, not to mention the time for onboarding and settling in… This results in a loss of momentum on projects, extra burden for the person that takes on some of the duties in the interim (usually in addition to their current role), and disruption for the team.
When we ask the somewhat obvious question ‘what is your succession plan?’, the response is a definitive ‘oh no, we have a merit based selection process here, we can’t have a succession plan!’
So, we ask the question ‘are the two mutually exclusive?’ and our answer is definitely NO!
Succession planning helps to create a pool of suitable home grown candidates, from which a successful candidate is selected through a merit process.
Put simply, succession planning is about preparing people for advancement – giving them opportunities to gain skills and experiences that will help them succeed in a leadership or more senior role. The goal of succession planning, or talent management, is to build a pool of people that are eligible for promotion when a position becomes available.
Succession planning is a deliberate and systematic effort designed to ensure the continued effective performance of an organisation, division, department, or work group by making provision for the development and replacement of key people over time. (William Rothwell, Effective Succession Planning). It is also a good way of preserving your corporate memory.
But isn’t this just tapping people on the shoulder? Playing favourites?
Not at all. This does not mean that the person is automatically promoted. It means that the organisation has a broader pool of potential candidates that are suitably experienced and qualified to take on the role, if they should apply and be successful.
The Australian Public Service Commission (APSC) published succession planning guidelines in 2003 stating that:
The APS employment framework does not prevent the identification and nurturing of capable staff with potential to progress to higher roles. It requires, simply, that any such approaches are consistent with merit and that they are transparent, equitable and fair.
Succession management helps build organisational capacity by developing a competitive internal field from which vacancies in leadership or specialist roles can be filled, subject to open and competitive selection processes.
This is further reinforced by the APS Talent Management Guide which in 2015 outlined the importance of building and nurturing a pool of talented people that can be used to safeguard an organisation against potential leadership shortfalls, or shortfalls in technical/specialist positions.
Many successful organisations have concluded that their future capabilities will be in jeopardy without a supply of talented leaders at the ready, and succession planning is an active, strategic approach to building this supply. In addition to protecting critical business capabilities, succession planning can accelerates leadership development and ensure that your high performers are able to be their best.
There are many reference books and how-to guides on succession planning and talent management that provide step-by-step instructions on how to build your plan. Many of these start with the organisational strategy or the overall workforce plan. We agree that a strategic view must be a key consideration. But we also believe that it depends largely on the discussions managers have with their staff about their career aspirations.
So what are our tips for success?
To be successful, organisations must use their performance and development reviews effectively. These review processes can assist in the development of training and career plans that are in line with an individual’s career aspirations. Development opportunities may include:
formal training in leadership, management or technical skills
opportunities to act in the role or other similar roles
working on projects that will give them exposure to new skills, or a broader view of the organisation
mentoring or coaching
providing additional responsibilities to build skills and confidence
planned ‘on-the-job' training, including shadowing.
Care must be taken to ensure that these individuals are recognised as high potential and ‘worthy’ of investment, but they should not be given the expectation that they will be appointed to a desired position. The normal competitive and merit-based selection and appointment processes will apply, and they will be in a better position to compete and demonstrate their capability for a more senior role.
The challenge for leaders is to develop a plan for their emerging leaders and develop a pool of potential candidates ready to take up new challenges.