Data-driven succession planning

No matter how successful a company is, succession planning is an essential component to do good business. It’s easy to put off planning when things seem to be lining up so perfectly but succession planning should never be put off for many reasons.

No one can plan for a disaster. No matter how great the company is or how great the employees are we can’t predict unforeseen illness, sudden decisions to retire/quit or fire. So although we cannot plan for such adversities we can put in  place a system that will help the transformation of business change goes smoothly while maintaining positive relationships with employees. 

Succession planning is an invaluable benefit to your company now. Just as companies grow and change every day, so does a succession plan. What you may have had in the past will likely not be relevant today. A succession plan is not meant to be a reactive solution to change, it is used and planned for properly to help a company stay afloat, be agile and position itself to take advantage of new opportunities. 

Not only does this type of planning sustain workplace balance but it allows the bigger picture to be brought to light. It allows high performing individuals to be recognized and allows necessary time to coach these employees for new responsibilities.  It can uncover real potential from hidden talent as well.

Recently, we have had a few of our regular clients ask us about succession planning. They have seen some changes in their organization and know there will be many retiring over the next 5 years so they want BizXcel to come in and help with this consulting piece. This includes capturing corporate knowledge and identifying knowledge and skills to continually build competitive advantage for years to come.

We focus on two things: consulting and training. One of our clients asked us, “How do I monitor employees to make sure our high performing potential talent doesn’t go unnoticed?” This particular client recognizes that if those high performing employees are not given the proper support and training they could become disengaged and even search for employment elsewhere. 

Consulting and training is a great way to start the process. And in addition to these services, there are tools that can help manage succession planning that are very useful for managers. 

With the right data analytics tool a manager can track and manage positions, employee counts, employee performance that is aligned with core competencies, current skill sets versus skill sets needed, hiring data and more. 

Data is important to help a company know at what level people are currently performing at and what needs to be done for succession planning to take place. 

Using data analytics for succession planning, you can uncover:

•Hidden talent

•Hidden staffing risks

•Average tenure/turnover rates

•Combinations of job, skill, geography

Take the future of your business into your own hands.