technology
Let Data Define Your
Succession Plan
THE LEADERSHIP SUCCESSION PATH IS CLEARER
WITH BEHAVIOURAL ANALYTICS
By Doug McCann
It’s 11 o’clock; do you know where your next leader is?
The issue of succession planning continually rises to the top
as a hot-button issue for boards, but few executives actual-ly
know who their next leader will be. Research conducted by
the Canadian Federation of Independent Business shows that less
than 50 per cent of Canada’s small to mid-sized (SMEs) business-es
have developed a formal succession plan. And if you want to feel
even less prepared, the Harvard Business Review suggests that an
organization should be grooming at least seven potential CEOs,
across several generations throughout the company.
But it’s not all doom and gloom, because there are proven
strategies and tools, such as behavioural assessments, that pro-vide
a straightforward and scientific framework for building a
strong leadership pipeline. By injecting intention into succession
planning, organizations that plan ahead are successfully adding,
cultivating and preparing the next generation of corporate leaders.
Follow these three steps and over time you’ll create a path to suc-cessfully
fill your leadership pipeline.
1. HIRE EMPLOYEES THAT FIT YOUR
ORGANIZATION’S CULTURE
When it comes to succession planning, it pays to play the long
game. Finding the right successors for an organization is a pro-cess
that requires years of planning, mentoring and guidance.
According to the statistics, your next leader will be plucked from
the ranks within your own company. Rethink the hiring process
not as simply filling an opening, but rather with the objective of
engaging a potential leader.
elnur / Shutterstock.com
HRPROFESSIONALNOW.CA ❚ NOVEMBER 2017 ❚ 33
/Shutterstock.com
/HRPROFESSIONALNOW.CA