The Importance of a Leadership Succession Plan

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Reasons for the Failure of Succession Plan Development
Reasons for Engaging in Succession Planning
Difference Between Replacement Planning and Succession Planning
Components of a Succession Planning Program
Role of the HR Team
Conclusion
References

Introduction

A succession plan is an essential component of sustainable leadership and human resource management in an organization. This type of planning boils down to the idea that personnel cannot be with the company indefinitely, and an appropriate course of action should be developed to respond to changes in staffing. In most cases, succession planning focuses on senior managers; nevertheless, all key positions should be included in the plan. This paper is aimed at presenting arguments and real incentives to convince the top management of an individual organization of the need to develop a succession plan. Formulating the appropriate steps to take and assessing the roles involved are the components of the analysis. In the context of a dynamic labor market and flexible employment principles, a succession plan is a mandatory program for the organization to develop and implement to avoid a drop in productivity in certain positions and, consequently, a loss of its competitive advantage.

Reasons for the Failure of Succession Plan Development

There are several possible reasons why top leaders fail to develop an effective succession plan. One of them is the nature of the recruiting strategy; for instance, according to Oduwusi (2018), in some family-owned businesses, staff are recruited by kinship rather than through general competition, which, in turn, does not allow for an adequate assessment of employee tenure. Another reason, which can be considered more common, is the lack of professional preparedness of young managers interested in promotion. The inability to control the influx of new employees and plan the personnel management policy productively leads to the collapse of the succession plan, which explains the relevance of improving the relevant skills.

Reasons for Engaging in Succession Planning

From both an economic and a practical perspective, engaging in succession planning is an essential aspect of leadership in the organization. Ali and Mehreen (2018) assess the relevance of this work and highlight job security and successful turnover prediction as valuable outcomes. When speaking of opportunities for top managers, succession planning provides a chance to establish productive interaction with subordinates and control performance, which are critical implications in light of dynamic labor conditions. Moreover, engaging in succession planning has value as an activity that eliminates team discord and encourages high levels of communication based on trust and mutual loyalty. Therefore, this practice is relevant not only as a valuable planning algorithm but also as a security plan.

Difference Between Replacement Planning and Succession Planning

The concepts of replacement planning and succession planning are important to separate because they reflect distinctive objectives to implement within current operating modes. Donner et al. (2017) offer a precise formulation reflecting the difference between the two concepts. According to the authors, “succession planning is designed to ensure a continued pool of qualified candidates so that organizational structure and performance continue to be effective after a leadership change” (Donner et al., 2017, p. 126). Replacement, in turn, is not associated with such long-term tasks and implies analyzing organizational effectiveness in case of change of employees. As a result, when speaking of the value of both concepts from a leadership position, succession requires more effort to undertake, but this practice provides more accurate and important data regarding potential shifts in organizational structure and productivity.

Components of a Succession Planning Program

For the organization under consideration, the individual components of the succession planning program are of the greatest importance. To eliminate risks and ensure effective control over personnel performance, the following factors should be promoted: communication culture, career advancement opportunities, and talent management. Each of these elements is essential in its own way due to the ability to create positive working conditions for employees (Okwakpam, 2019). However, while speaking of a specific example of an organization, the totality of the presented factors is the key to sustainable leadership work. This is because both managers and subordinates interact openly, and any personnel management policies are transparent, which, in turn, strengthens communication and prevents high turnover.

Role of the HR Team

The role of the HR team in ensuring effective succession planning is important for several reasons. Firstly, as Aljeemaz (2017) notes, staff in this department can put in place an effective oversight program to avoid any surprises and sudden changes in personnel control policies. Secondly, specialists in this profile can conduct a detailed analysis of the parameters to take into account when planning succession, namely the level of turnover, the age range of subordinates, and other nuances. Finally, along with top managers, the HR team can organize a mode of sustainable interaction with employees, thereby achieving open communication and eliminating differences of opinion on labor issues and career advancement.

Conclusion

For the organization under consideration, the relevance of developing an effective succession plan is due to the need for sustainable leadership control over the aspects of personnel management in the company and ensuring the productivity of the work process. A lack of managerial experience or a restrictive recruiting policy can be reasons for the failure of such a plan, and work to promote it is essential for both the company’s leaders and ordinary employees. Open communication, career opportunity advancement, and talent management are tools to drive the development of a productive succession plan that is different from that of replacement, and the role of the HR team is significant in this process.

References

Ali, Z., & Mehreen, A. (2018). Understanding succession planning as a combating strategy for turnover intentions. Journal of Advances in Management Research, 16(2), 216-233. Web.

Aljeemaz, M. (2017). Business succession planning. Strategic Brand.

Donner, E. M., Gridley, D., Ulreich, S., & Bluth, E. I. (2017). Succession planning and management: The backbone of the radiology group’s future. Journal of the American College of Radiology, 14(1), 125-129. Web.

Oduwusi, O. (2018). Succession planning as a key to effective managerial transition process in corporate organization. American Journal of Management Science and Engineering, 3(1), 1-6. Web.

Okwakpam, J. A. (2019). Effective succession planning: A roadmap to employee retention. Kuwait Chapter of the Arabian Journal of Business and Management Review, 8(2), 1-10.

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