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Succession planning for pivotal roles
Succession planning is about identifying people who have the potential to step into roles as they become available. Since we operate in dynamically changing contexts, succession planning needs to involve an in-depth understanding of individual capabilities and potential. While existing capabilities are easier to detect, gauging potential is more difficult. Yet the development of a talent pipeline is reliant on information in both areas. To create adaptive and agile workplaces, bench depth is needed as well as a pipeline. Effective bench depth is not just about having many people who are equally capable. It is surely about knowing the nuances which makes one person more likely to respond effectively than another in a given set of circumstance. This approach to managing and developing people calls for a more granular approach to complement appraisals and general observations.
Pivotal roles encompass all roles which are key to an organisation's future. Examples are roles with a large span of control, roles with large budgetary responsibilities, senior and strategic roles as well as customer contact and specialist roles.
Typical questions are: [top]
- What is the role about?
- How is the role being performed?
- What might be the likely changes to the role?
- What are the available capabilities?
- What's the degree of fit?
- How can we develop the individuals given what we now know?
ABC's approach [top]
- Mapping out of pivotal roles to better understand the context and boundaries of the roles, key interfaces and nuances that individuals have to master in order to give superior performance. The identification of underpinning competencies to enable effective delivery of the role.
- Understanding of current capabilities through the use of psychometric tools covering both personal characteristics, styles and the use of one of the most comprehensive tools in the market, the Cognitive Processes Profile (1) to better understand current and potential cognitive processes.
- Identification of potential where abilities are under-utilised or as yet, untapped currently.
- Assessment of capabilities both current and future against role requirements.
- Agreement of interventions and development possibilities.
- Feedback and coaching throughout.
(1) For more information see ASE's website www.ase-solutions.co.uk and www.cognadev.com/howwedoit.htm
Benefits
The benefit to you is that you will have a comprehensive snapshot view as well as an indication of potential. This means that development activities can be designed with a degree of specificity that will give a higher Return on Investment for everyone concerned.
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