Search

How can we help?

Icon

Succession Planning – Are you ready for the future?

If one of the key individuals in your company, such as a manager or someone with technical skills, was to resign tomorrow morning, would you be able to identify their successor?

This is a question that many businesses struggle to answer, with companies more likely to recruit from outside the business when vacancies arise, than look for a suitable replacement among their existing staff. Looking externally is understandable – time is often a luxury in today’s busy workplaces, with companies seeking candidates that can slot straight into the role without the need for time consuming training, and without needing to fill the vacancy the promoted person would leave behind.

However, this type of reactive recruitment has meant that succession planning is often neglected, resulting in difficulties and disruption when a member of staff moves on. An external candidate may demonstrate all of the skills for the role but could take time to understand the company’s culture and ways of working. Proactive succession planning can help a company avoid these issues. A long-term plan allows a business to spot potential vacancies early on and gives them time to train up existing members of staff to take over when the time comes. This kind of coaching and development of existing staff has many benefits. It ensures that the company has a workforce which can provide continuity and stability, which understands what the company wants and how to deliver it. It also addresses one of the key reasons for external appointments. Companies complain that it takes too long to train up internal staff, preferring instead to bring in a “ready-made” replacement. By developing the leadership skills of existing staff, it can ensure that when a vacancy arises, there is a candidate ready and waiting to assume the responsibility.

Succession planning can have the additional benefit of improving retention levels. A company that seeks to recruit for senior positions externally may send the message to existing staff that they will need to move on in order to progress, which both creates another vacancy to fill and leads to a higher turnover. By investing in the existing workforce and encouraging them to develop their leadership skills, staff will feel valued and are more likely to commit their future to the company, providing further stability.

HR has an important role to play when it comes to succession planning and can offer support to both the managers in charge of developing up and coming individuals, and the individuals themselves. It can indicate where potential gaps will arise, looking across the business to see where the planning should be focused. It can then help identify who might be a good fit for these roles in future and can work with management to create leadership programmes to prepare them.

A long-term plan allows a business to spot potential vacancies early on and gives them time to train up existing members of staff to take over when the time comes.

Programmes that develop existing staff into future leaders are crucial for the long-term success of a business. Such programmes can be tailored to the business’s specific needs, and help it prepare for changes, both planned and unexpected. Many businesses find it difficult to find suitable candidates for management positions, and it becomes more difficult still when the vacancy is for senior positions. By engaging in succession planning and investing in leadership coaching for existing staff, a company can pre-empt this problem and ensure its continued success and stability for the future.

If you are interested in leadership coaching & development Forbury People can assist you. Please get in touch. 

About this article

Disclaimer
This information is for guidance purposes only and should not be regarded as a substitute for taking legal advice. Please refer to the full General Notices on our website.

About this article

Read, listen and watch our latest insights

Pub
  • 07 February 2025
  • Corporate and M&A

Talk & Golf : Thinking of Exiting your Business?

Join Stuart Mullins, Partner at Clarkslegal, and Nicky Goringe Larkin, Managing Director at Succession Planning, for a morning breakfast talk on preparing your business for exit, followed by a round of golf at the Eyston Course at Caversham Golf Club.

art
  • 06 February 2025
  • Privacy and Data Protection

Cookies and Consent: the ICO’s Cookie Review

In the digital age, cookies play a crucial role in how websites operate and interact with users.

art
  • 05 February 2025
  • Corporate and M&A

Growing Pains for Businesses

This thought piece considers some of the key issues and pain points facing a business planning to scale up

art
  • 03 February 2025
  • Employment

Indirect discrimination: How mandated office returns could discriminate against working mothers

In this article though, we will focus on one of the biggest potential hurdles, and the one that is garnering the most media attention and the most criticism. Is a return to work policy discriminatory on grounds of sex?

art
  • 24 January 2025
  • Privacy and Data Protection

UK Data Protection: A look back at 2024 and what to expect in 2025

On 15 January 2025, Louise Keenan and Shauna Jones hosted our webinar “UK Data Protection: what happened in 2024 and what’s in store for 2025.” Our webinar is available for you to watch, but in this article, we will provide a brief summary of what was discussed.

art
  • 22 January 2025
  • Corporate and M&A

Deal Announcement: Clarkslegal’s Corporate team advise founder on exit from Bristol based hospitality business

Clarkslegal is pleased to have advised the exiting shareholder and director of a hospitality business in the South West on the sale of their shareholding and termination of their employment.