Free Essay About Designing Succession Planning: Lessons From The Industry Leaders

What is Succession planning?

First of all, it is essential to refer to the fact that there is no particular empirical evidence regarding the diverse succession planning’ combined effects. At the same time, the importance which is posed by both the scholars and practitioners on the succession planning and diversity, makes this topic relevant for consideration in the scope of managerial science.
Succession planning may be defined as the process, which is mainly directed on identification of the internal people as well as their development in the case if they have the potential of fulfilling the key positions within the top management of this organisation. Such form of planning enhances the availability of capable and experienced employees, who are ready to assume the fact of fulfilling the particular positions within the leadership of the organisation in the case if such positions become vacant (Atwood 1). In other words, succession planning may be referred as a replacement planning for the major roles within the business entity or organisation (Rothwell 3).
It is possible to make a claim that the talent-pool management is mainly related to the process of establishing the set of the feeder groups upwards and downwards of the whole leadership progression or pipeline. From the other hand, the major focus of the replacement planning is put on the identification of the specific back-up candidates for particular positions within the senior management
Importance of integration of the succession planning to the diversity management is mainly based on the fact that in such case more robust succession plans are generated as well as strategic focus is directed on the diverse workforce development.
In the case of such interrelation, there is an option of providing additional quantity of the approaches towards the strategy formulation trough the wide use of diverse talent’ planned succession. Among such options, it is possible to outline the following: increase of the diverse and global markets and innovation-based strategies (Greer and Virick 218).
What different approaches/steps can organizations take to ensure this process is integrated and inclusive for all members of the organization?
In order to ensure the integrated process of succession planning the following steps should be undertaken by the management of the organisation. First of all, the strategic integration should be undertaken: gaining the alignment between diverse succession planning and business strategy; framing the set of the programs, while putting the major emphasis on the “high potentials” development; integrating the programs; goals and strategy.
The next step of ensuring refers to the leadership issues. It implies the set of the following practices: values basis establishing for the diverse succession; getting the commitment from the top management of the organisation in terms of the diverse successors’ personal mentoring; involving the diversity goals into the process of executives’ and managers’ performance evaluations; setting the close interrelations between the chief diversity officer and CEO; involving the chief diversity officer into the decision-making process, related to the succession; establishing the authority and accountability for the goals, related to the diverse succession.
While discussing the planning process and the ways it may be used in ensuring the fact that succession planning is integrated and inclusive for all members of the organization, it is essential to follow the set of the steps - identification of the future behavioral competencies, while taking in consideration the fact of their possible changes as well; carrying out the search for the diverse high potentials within the organisation; using the results orientation’ valid measures for high potentials identification (Greer and Virick 226).

Works Cited

Atwood, C. G. Succession Planning Basics. American Society for Training and Development, 2007. Print
Greer, C.R. and Virick, M. Diverse Succession Planning: Lessons From the Industry Leaders. Cengage Learning, 2013. Print
Rothwell, W. J. Effective Succession Planning: Ensuring Leadership Continuity and Building Talent from Within. AMACOM Div American Mgmt Assn, 2010. Print