Blog Posts

By Dr. Scott.

Over the last few entries, we’ve been navigating our way through some strategies and best practices for succession planning and succession plan implementation   If you’re just coming across this blog, then I invite you to also check out Leadership Potential and Implementing the Succession Plan to help bring you up to speed with our discussions thus far. 

As I’ve emphasized in the previous two installments, most organizations have a succession plan, but, more often than not, do not have the capacity or the long-term focus to effectively implement an effective succession plan.  They have a plan, but fail to implement the plan and often pay the price.  In Strategic Succession: A step-by-step guide to creating a succession plan, the authors emphasized succession planning and implementation as a “shield” that protects against “uncertainty, disruption, and a threat to sustainability.”

In this week’s piece, then, we look at some best practices for safeguarding your organization and your brand through succession plan implementation.  Specifically, we look at the value and “shields” that disseminating the plan effectively, investing in your mission, and building legacies can add to your business operations and long-term sustainability. 

Disseminate Value

Once a plan is in place and set in motion, the manner in which the plan is disseminated throughout the organization is critical to overall success.  It should be noted that some of the plan should remain confidential.  This is done to promote healthy competition and to avoid raising expectations, internal politics, external scrutiny, or drops in individual performance.  That being said, a great deal of the plan, in various capacities, should be effectively communicated throughout various levels of the organization.  Specifically, leaders should emphasize a dedication to developing internal talent and building from within the organization.  Clear criteria for advancement and both required and optional opportunities for growth and professional development should be clearly, and regularly communicated.  The last piece of this puzzle, however, is to make good on these promises, promote from within, and celebrate successful successions.  These actions build trust in the process, motivate employees to participate in that process, and communicates value in the succession process to all stakeholders.

Invest in the Mission

A culture of short-term hires, high turnover intentions, and constantly re-hiring and on-boarding is a difficult way to run a business.  Now, it should be said that effective succession planning execution cannot really fix the problems I just listed if the organizational culture is toxic or complacent.  Effective succession plan implementation can only be a successful component of an otherwise strong organizational culture. 

Assuming we already have a positive organizational culture, it is helpful to see effective succession plan implementation as a guiding principle of sustainable mission achievement.  If you or your human resources managers are constantly wasting time, money, and energy on replacing and training new additions to your workforce, you are squandering valuable resources that could be used to invest in succession planning and implementation.  WE need to break the cycle and invest in not only our business model, but our mission and our people.  This is why succession planning is such an integral component of organizational culture and purpose.  By investing in leaders of tomorrow who are already invested in the organization and the mission, you have a greater chance of ensuring long term goal and mission achievement. 

Build Legacies

Effective succession plan implementation also strengthens organizations by developing a foundation for building individual and organizational legacies.  When existing leadership steps down, those leaders may have reservations about leaving so many projects unfinished.  Similarly, when new leaders are asked to fill those vacancies, feelings of uncertainty, ill-preparedness, and over-whelmingness can impact effective transitions. 

Effective succession plan implementation allows existing leaders to focus on imparting their knowledge and skills and leaving projects in capable hands.  This allows existing leadership to define the scope of their departure and leave lasting impressions on individuals and the organization as a whole.  Through effective succession planning implementation, future leaders also feel prepared and have the ability to plan for assuming leadership roles and define the scope of their “first hundred days” and other leadership milestones.  Promoting from within, celebrating those stepping down, and communally welcoming those in new roles are all key team building activities that help build lasting legacies for your employees and your organization as a whole.

Final Thoughts

In this blog, we’ve highlighted some of the many benefits of monitoring effective succession plan implementation.  Through a well-structured succession plan, organizations can “shield” themselves from uncertainties of unexpected leadership vacancies, high employee turn-over rates, costly re-hiring and training efforts, and under-prepared or incapable leadership.  We explored three ways that effective succession plan implementation can help protect businesses from unnecessary exits from the market including disseminating value, investing in your mission, and building legacies. 

Thank you for reading the Madison School of Professional Development Wednesday Leadership Blog where we highlight leadership best practices each week.  Check out more from this blog and other blogs hosted by MEG here.

If you have a topic that you would like to see me pontificate on, drop me an email at info@meg-spd.com.

Dr. Scott Eidson is the Executive Vice President of the Madison School of Professional Development and holds doctoral degrees in both history and business.  When not thinking about leadership, he’s usually thinking about surfing or old Volkswagens.