Small to Mid-Size Companies Failing at Succession Planning

In a recent blog on BNET, Jessica Stillman quotes a new survey from the Institute of Corporate Productivity. She says the report finds that: “Two thirds of firms recently reported not being immediately prepared to fill a vacancy at the top of their organization, though the very biggest companies seem more prepared than the rest.”

She goes on to say that firms with more than 10,000 employees are significantly more prepared, then asks what’s holding smaller firms back.

According to a recent IBM Global Business Services and HCI’s Integrated Talent Management Study, what’s holding smaller companies back is a lack of data. Most smaller companies have yet to adopt an automated talent management systems, so they simply don’t have access to the data they need for effective succession planning. Data like:

• Who is likely to retire over the next 5 years?
• Who is at risk of leaving in the next year?
• What skills does the organization need to achieve its strategic goals?
• Who best demonstrates those skills today?
• Where in the organization are there critical skill gaps that need to be addressed?

You simply can’t effectively gather and analyze this data using a manual paper-based performance management process.

And succession planning is no longer just about replacing your CEO or senior leaders. With the current and growing talent shortage, it’s imperative for organizations to have succession plans in place for all critical areas.

Today, automating your talent management processes isn’t expensive or risky. What’s holding your company back?