If you’re on the fence about creating a succession planning strategy, ask yourself the following questions:
- What percentage of my employees will retire in the next 5 to 10 years?
- What percentage of my existing employees are looking elsewhere for employment?
- Am I equipped with the right data to answer #1 and #2? Do I have the insight needed to fill those gaps?
I’ve found that a growing number of organizations are realizing the need for a formal succession strategy due to many reasons. The baby boomer generation continues to make their way toward retirement – at a higher rate than the number of people entering the workforce. External searches for candidates can prove to be costly. Once you identify an external candidate, you must offer them a competitive package and then wait for them to get up to speed. If your strategy is to consistently look outside of the organization to fill gaps, you run the risk of low engagement among employees when they realize there is no room to advance within the organization.
It’s critical for organizations to understand the various benefits and components of succession planning. While it can help you identify who is next in line for key positions, it also allows you to assess current talent within your organization, and identify areas of development to bring internal employees up to speed to takeover those key roles.
Career development plans are a critical component of succession planning that allows your organization to be transparent with employees on their career paths and future opportunity. This is especially important to one of the five generations in your workforce – millennials. Millennials seek feedback and development in their roles, more than any other generation. Having a clear path for them is key to retention.
Simply put, a strategy for succession planning will ensure your organization can keep functioning and growing as your employee’s transition throughout the organization.
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