Effective Succession Planning

WILLIAM J. ROTHWELL, PH.D., SPHR, CPLP FELLOW, is Professor of Workplace Learning and Performance at Pennsylvania State University and President of Rothwell Associates, a premier human resources consulting firm.

Contents

List of Exhibits

Preface to the Fifth Edition

Acknowledgments

Advance Organizer for This Book

Quick Start Guide

Part I

The Essentials of Succession Planning

and Management

Chapter 1 What Is Succession Planning and Management?

Six Ministudies: Can You Solve These Succession Problems?

Defining Succession Planning and Management

Distinguishing Succession Planning and Management from Replacement

Planning, Workforce Planning, Talent Management, and Human Capital

Management

Making the Business Case for Succession Planning and Management

Which Comes First, Talent or Strategy?

Reasons for a Succession Planning and Management Program

Different Reasons to Launch Succession Planning and Management

Depending on Global Location

The Current Status of Succession Planning: What Research Shows

The Most Famous Question in Succession: To Tell or Not To Tell?

Management Succession Planning, Technical Succession Planning, or Social

Network Succession Planning: What Are You Planning For?

Best Practices and Approaches

Ensuring Leadership Continuity in Organizations

Summary

Chapter 2 Trends Influencing Succession Planning and Management

The Ten Key Trends

What Does All This Mean for Succession Planning and Management?

Summary

Chapter 3 Moving to a State-of-the-Art Approach

The Present Status of Succession Planning Programs

Characteristics of Effective Succession Planning Programs

Common Mistakes and Missteps to Avoid

The Life Cycle of Succession Planning and Management Programs: Five

Generations

Identifying and Solving Problems with Various Approaches

Integrating Whole Systems Transformational Change and Appreciative

Inquiry into Succession: What Are These Topics, and What Added Value

Do They Bring?

Requirements for a New Approach

Key Steps in a New Approach

A Second Dimension: Technical Succession Planning

A Third Dimension: Social Relationship Succession Planning

Transition Management and Mergers, Acquisitions, and Takeovers

Summary

Chapter 4 Competency Identification, Values Clarification, and Ethics:

Keys to Succession Planning and Management

What Are Competencies?

How Are Competencies Used in Succession Planning and

Management?

Conducting Competency Identification Studies

Using Competency Models

Newest Developments in Competency Identification, Modeling, and

Assessment

What?s the Focus: Management or Technical Competencies?

Identifying and Using ??Generic?? and ??Culture-Specific?? Competency

Development Strategies to Build Bench Strength

What Are Values, and What Is Values Clarification?

How Are Values Used in Succession Planning and Management?

Conducting Values Clarification Studies

Using Values Clarification

What Are Ethics, and How Are Ethics Used in SP&M?

Bringing It All Together: Competencies, Values, and Ethics

Summary

Part II

Laying the Foundation for a Succession

Planning and Management Program

Chapter 5 Making the Case for Major Change

Assessing Current Problems and Practices

Demonstrating the Need

Determining Organizational Requirements

Linking Succession Planning and Management Activities to Organizational

and Human Resource Strategy

Benchmarking Best Practices and Common Business Practices in Other

Organizations

Obtaining and Building Management Commitment

The Key Role of the CEO in the Succession Effort

The Key Daily Role of Managers in the Succession Effort

Sustaining Support for the Succession Effort

Summary

Chapter 6 Starting a Systematic Program

Strategic Choices of Where to Start and How to Start

Conducting a Risk Analysis and Building a Commitment to Change

Clarifying Program Roles

Formulating a Mission Statement

Writing Policy and Procedures

Identifying Target Groups

Clarifying the Roles of the CEO, Senior Managers, and Others

Setting Program Priorities

Addressing the Legal Framework

Establishing Strategies for Rolling Out the Program

Summary

Chapter 7 Refining the Program

Preparing a Program Action Plan

Communicating the Action Plan

Conducting Succession Planning and Management Meetings

Training on Succession Planning and Management

Counseling Managers About Succession Planning Problems in Their

Areas

Common SP&M Problems?and Possible Solutions

Summary

Part III

Assessing the Present and the Future

Chapter 8 Assessing Present Work Requirements and Individual Job

Performance

Identifying Key Positions

Three Approaches for Determining Work Requirements in Key

Positions

Using Full-Circle, Multi-Rater Assessments

Appraising Performance and Applying Performance Management

Creating Talent Pools: Techniques and Approaches

Thinking Beyond Talent Pools

Summary

Chapter 9 Assessing Future Work Requirements and Individual

Potential

Identifying Key Positions and Talent Requirements for the Future

Three Approaches for Determining Future Work Requirements in Key

Positions

Assessing Individual Potential: The Traditional Approach

A List of Potential Assessment Approaches

Are There Other Ways to Think of Potential Assessment?

Other Issues in Potential Assessment

Summary

Part IV

Closing the ??Developmental Gap??:

Operating and Evaluating a Succession

Planning and Management Program

Chapter 10 Developing Internal Successors

Using Grids to Guide Management Decision Making

Testing Bench Strength

Talent Review Meetings

Formulating Internal Promotion Policy

Preparing Individual Development Plans

Evaluating Individual Development Plans

Developing Successors Internally

The Importance of an Inventory of Developmental Experiences

Formal, Social, and Informal Learning Experiences to Build

Competence

Relating Engagement to Succession Planning and Talent Management

Relating Deploym
ent to Succession Planning and Talent Management

The Role of Leadership Development Programs

The Role of Coaching

The Role of Executive Coaching

The Role of Mentoring

The Role of Action Learning

The Role of Acceleration Pools

Summary

Chapter 11 Assessing Alternatives to Internal Development

The Need to Manage for ??Getting the Work Done?? Rather than ??Managing

Succession??

Innovative Approaches to Tapping the Retiree Base

Deciding What to Do

Summary

Chapter 12 Integrating Recruitment with Succession Planning

What Is Recruitment?

When Should Recruitment Be Used to Source Talent?

Internal Versus External Recruitment: Integrating Job Posting with Succession

Planning

Recruiting Talented People from Outside

Innovative Approaches to Recruitment

Summary

Chapter 13 Integrating Retention with Succession Planning

What Is Retention, and Why Is It Important?

Who Should Be Retained?

What Common Misconceptions Exist in Managing Retention Issues?

Why Onboarding Is Important to Retention

Using a Systematic Approach to Increase the Retention of Talented

People

Summary

Chapter 14 Using Technology to Support Succession Planning and

Management Programs

Defining Online and High-Tech Methods

Where to Apply Technology Methods

How To Evaluate and Use Technology Applications

What Specialized Competencies Do Succession Planning and Management

Coordinators Need to Use These Applications?

Summary

Chapter 15 Evaluating Succession Planning and Management

Programs

What Is Evaluation?

What Metrics Should Be Used to Evaluate Succession Planning and

Management Programs?

What Should Be Evaluated?

How Should Evaluation Be Conducted?

How Can Succession Planning and Talent Management Be Evaluated with the

Balanced Scorecard and HR Dashboards?

Summary

Chapter 16 The Future of Succession Planning and Management

The Fifteen Predictions

Summary

Appendix I: Selected Websites

Appendix II: Guide for Replacement Planning

Appendix III: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About Succession Planning

and Management

Notes

About the Author

Index