According to a 2014 Human Capital Media Advisory Group, succession plans are found in about 70% of organizations. But are they actually followed?
Authentic succession is part and parcel of learning organizations and it’s incumbent upon talent managers to assure that this happens.
Businesses may have impressive programs for development of high-potentials, yet they may not actually place the most worthy candidates in higher-level assignments, because C-level leadership overrides the process in favor of others who were pre-ordained all along. Candidates who apply themselves to prescribed continuing development can find themselves passed over for the boss’s choice from all along.
Succession planning coupled with leadership development is authentic if it results in a true meritocracy. To achieve this, the identification and development process for high potentials has to be endorsed and embraced at the executive level.
Dr. Lily Kelly-Radford writes on the subject this month in Talent Management. Read it here.