Planning Today for Tomorrow

by | Blog, Leadership Development, Succession Planning

Succession Planning and Your Retirement

We recently shared an article that reminded us of a story. A while back a CEO came into the office and told us he was retiring.  We congratulated him on his success and decision to hang his tie up. Then we asked him who was taking over for him. His response, “We don’t know”. He and the company had no succession plan.

Succession Planning

Successful businesses spend countless hours planning out their business strategy, mapping out strengths, weaknesses, threats, and opportunities.  These plans are heavily focused on what they can do to grow sales or expand their services. However, often the people who lead these functions overlook what would happen if someone along the chain left the organization.  Therefore, being a successful organization means being prepared for internal and external challenges alike.

As you may suspect, succession planning is about finding the right person to fill the right position at the right time. Usually, effective hiring practice finds these people to fill roles throughout the organization.  However, building a succession plan means looking inward to the organization to find the person with the requisite skills, aptitude, capacity, and desire to advance to that next level well before you need them.

Planning for Succession

A strong succession plan focuses on the whole organization – from the top to the bottom. Our CEO was retiring, and replacing him will have ripple effects of change and transition throughout the organization. An organization must prepare for this transition period well in advance of needing the plan. Doing so will provide opportunity for individuals to come to light who may be attractive candidates for leadership. In addition, planning removes the pressure of making decisions under the gun.

Consider these questions:

  • Is an internal candidate a good fit?
  • Did the organization do enough to build up potential replacements?
  • Did the company provide enough training and mentorship along the way for an internal candidate?
  • Who currently displays leadership qualities?

Leadership Training for Succession Planning

So, with these questions in mind, how can an organization ensure they are building a pipeline of talent that can plug any hole in the ship? First, we contend that by investing in leadership and soft skills training, organizations can provide opportunities for future leaders to grow while preparing for the next vertical move. Today’s leaders are required to navigate more complex engagements that require more than just ‘on the job’ training, for instance. Succession planning gives you and your people the right tools and skills, before they are needed.

Second, hard skills, the actual knowledge and implementation of that new knowledge, must be supported through training, education, certifications, and acknowledgement of effort in learning new skills. Investing in your people is an investment in yourself. This type of top down support increases loyalty, longevity, and morale.

If you are not sure where to start with your succession planning or leadership program, we are here to help as your trusted guide. Our strength is using your real-world organizational challenges to your advantage. Please reach out to us at Sojourn Partners at 603-232-9403 to begin your journey through succession planning.

You deserve to retire!

About Sojourn

Sojourn Partners is a results-driven executive leadership coaching firm that empowers the professional workforce to think differently in order to realize the full return on investment in themselves and their companies. Professional leadership thinking and intervention, based on years of research and experience, place Sojourn Partners at the forefront in executive leadership coaching, organizational development, strategic planning and culture and climate change.

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