How can you identify the best potential successors for executive positions?

In my experience, today leader needs to have more of regenerative set of competence. Best potential successor for an executive position need to be a person who has a greater level of empathy and who could appreciate few principles such as generational cohort theory, people want to self-optimize not the company, people get burnout and paradox of individuality and cohesiveness as a key dialect....

Totaly Agree the plan proposed, I can add to the actual ... - Define Succession Criteria :leadership qualities required - Assessment of Current Talent: Evaluate the existing talent internal pool. Look for high-potential employees who exhibit leadership skills, innovative thinking, adaptability, and a strong understanding of the company's values and goals. - Performance Evaluation - Leadership Development Programs - Feedback and 360-Degree Reviews - Tailored Development Plans The best potential successors are not just those with exceptional skills but also those who align with the company's values, culture, and long-term vision. Diversity in succession planning is also crucial for bringing varied perspectives to the executive table.

Executive transitions are often handled by asking the people in the running for the position, who, besides them, would be the best choice. Then, you pick the person with the most votes. This highly common approach is highly WRONG IMO. The reason is, many of the people asked will give answers that result in a pick that benefits them. Leadership is never about popularity but about doing the right thing for shareholders, workers and customers. Sometimes this means making painful decisions that make you hated in the short term by one group or another. If you choose a candidate who strives to be popular, they may not make the decisions needed to keep the company thriving.

Absolutely one of the most important tasks any organization undertakes and the most crucial for its ultimate success. First and foremost the organization has to have clear direction on where they are going. Finding a leader to move the organization that direction is not easy. First looking inside should be the first consideration. Current employees understand the culture but the key is can they see the vision beyond today and do they possess the skills to get there? If not can you get them there? If you have to look outside you might find the skill set. The question becomes do they fit the culture and respect it. Finding the right fit is not easy but it’s extremely important.

Finding the ideal successor involves more than just finding someone with the necessary abilities; it also involves identifying those who best represent the organization's values and goals. Any company's ability to develop leaders who not only possess competence but also uphold the company's culture and values will determine its future. An essential lesson from the piece is the value of a comprehensive strategy. It goes beyond what is written down. Technical skill alone is frequently not as important as emotional intelligence, flexibility, and a dedication to lifelong learning. These characteristics guarantee that a successor can successfully negotiate the intricate and dynamic business environment.

One of the biggest keys is to invest in your people. Once you identify your high performers invest in getting them to the next level. Look for the opportunity to help them grow.

In my experience, hiring an outside firm to build out the ecosystem of current exec level skills, unique abilities/gifts, time spans each is used to working on is vital. Depending on the age and lifecycle of a company, the pace of change in the industry, you may need an exec on the team that will bring new agility and resilience, or be expert at leading through crisis, or an intuitive exec who brings creative ways to build the next level of succession. Long story short: don’t neglect giving a careful eye to building for diversity of skills, strengths, thinking, and interesting backgrounds to make a company more competitive in the market.

Identification of high potential is important activity and it is important to overcome the personal bias and identify the right candidates and CEO with HR play have to lead and look at in details. Road map has to be laid clearly and periodic review is very important to track progress.

Look everywhere. Often we can find incredible people hiding in the company that we didn't know existed. Engage all levels of the company for them to help identify. If your company has an internal recognition forum that recognizes people for going above and beyond for internal or external clients this can be a valuable resource. People being recognized by their peers are already respected in the company so tap into that pool.

It is equally important to well know your key personnel, their priorities for the future, their future desires, how engaged they are with organization leaders, peers and supporting personnel and what they define as “having fun”.

One of the key challenge while working in succession planning is security and clear roadmap for the people who will be succeeded. Job security is key in emerging market and many a time this exercise is futile as the senior team is not clear what is next to them if they develop a successor and this is the level where organisation struggles to have alternates. Management team has to lay down the road map and give sense of security to everyone succession planing is not about taking away someone's job but rather a plan for nurturing talent as well having a more sustainable organization

I agree but it depends on the culture of the organisation, which needs to be built very conscientiously. There has to be a solid collaboration between every function, HR and the leadership. It's a continuous process and not a one off activity. It's always challenging to identify the development needs, fulfill the gaps and measure it's success.

Consider the services of an external advisor or executive development program. These organizations can develop a personalized plan for each candidate, arrange for the advancement training and help evaluate progress.

Providing individualized succession plans requires investment of time not only from leaders & subordinates but from HR & the organization. Leaders need to be able to trust that their organization is supportive & transparent about presenting successions plans that reflect opportunities that can be realistically achieved. If the time invested does not result in talent perceptions of achieving a reasonable # of their succession plan goals, talent will lose trust in the leaders & the organization. Organizations have to ensure they are equipping their leader managers (who are responsible for people) w/ the tools, knowledge & vision to be able to set development goals for their talent, thereby enabling their success, motivation & commitment.

Defining the potential of successors is not a one time process, it is a contentious process. We have to repeat it again to measure the progress in the developing of their leadership competencies.

Exec or c-suite roles need to have a T-shaped specialism where they have a broad understanding about the company and the ability to go deep in selected topics, functions or opportunities. Designing a good development plan needs to balance these competing needs for breadth and depth. Some helpful options are internal company secondments / deployments in different parts of the org and running long term special projects.

You will best identify potential successors for executive positions if you have been intentionally grooming them. Otherwise, it is like rolling the dice. Expose your staff to executive roles early so that you build a pipeline of successors. Organizations that have done this successfully, in my experience, started by closing the relationship gap between executives and the rest of the staff. As long as you have executives that act like celebrities around the rest of the staff, you will not have a solid succession plan.

Deferring to the leadership team on difficult decisions and working together on ways forward helps groom everybody involved to continue to evolve to the point of taking the wheel themselves. It also fosters the right behaviors to support the evolution of the overall organization as well as giving insight to how they think and interact during complex situations. Leadership teams that evolve this way have a much easier time with succession than those that just follow a CEO around.

Identifying the best successors for executive positions involves a multifaceted approach, starting with the commitment to providing ongoing development opportunities. By fostering a culture of continuous learning and growth within the organization, potential leaders can hone their skills and adapt to evolving challenges. This proactive investment in professional development not only enhances individual capabilities but also ensures a pool of well-prepared candidates ready to step into executive roles.

a sele??o de talentos gera, por si só, uma expectativa muito positiva nas pessoas e a lideran?a n?o pode procrastinar nas providências de desenvolvimento… certas competências podem ser desenvolvidas com treinamentos de alto nível ao redor do globo mas algumas só podem ser adquiridas através da execu??o de projetos específicos que as corpora??es possuem em grande quantidade… apoiar esses talentos através de encontros regulares que revisem passo-a-passo seus desenvolvimentos e oportunidades de corre??o de rota é um dever inalienável dessa lideran?a…

Engage, consult and empower the successor! Change is inevitable, pave the way for your successors. In my experience it is important to lay foundations for your team, pass on your successes and failures for your successors. Encouraging them to work experiment changes

Ich kann dieser Ausführung nur beipflichten. Rechtzeitige Auswahl der Talente um diese auf neue Aufgaben vorzubereiten. Strategische Themen mit Keyplayern teilen und deren Meinung einholen. Ein wichtiger aufgeführter Faktor sind die externen Faktoren welche die Strategie, Kultur und Struktur des Unternehmens beeinflussen. Hier müssen unbedingt neue Technologien berücksichtigt werden. Anpassungsf?higkeit ist eine Notwendigkeit da heutig Rollen in Zukunft nicht durchg?ngig existieren werden, dafür werden neue entstehen die wir heute noch nicht kennen. Durch gut dosierte Ma?nahmen mit der jeweils angepassten Gestaltungsspielraum werden Talente langfristig gebunden

For succession planning to be successful the process has to start early,as early as possible within 10 years, this means that you will have spotted potential candidates in your organization or have employed. Within this period you create Career Plan for them, coaching and mentoring with an appraiser system monitoring there development. They should be motivated and know that they are in training for succession.

Retaining potential successor/s is super important in succession planning. They should be given additional focus and one on one time. Steps should be taken to increase their acceptability as an upcoming leader by showcasing and appreciating not only their achievements but also their conduct and demeanor. They should be trusted and encouraged to challenge the status quo. They should be allowed to express themselves at as many occasions as possible. This would not only boost their confidence but also help them pressure test for upcoming crown.

It is important to make sure that the identified talent understands the realistic time line of succession. To often we identify someone and start engaging them but don't define the time line. Especially with younger generations of workers who are already impatient. If they start to get engaged they may feel this is happening tomorrow when actually this could be a multi-year project.

Don’t be greedy with top talented successors in your organisation instead reward generously without them asking for it and make them feel appreciated and recognised. Leaders build business cases for everything in business but stop short of proactively validating the business case of top talent. When it comes to your attention reactively, it is already too late.

Focus primarily in soft skills and cultural fit within the organization, unless a radical change is necessary. In my experience, knowledge of a function or position or department at an executive level is highly correlated with skills you develop throughout your career rather than technical skills. Motivation, people development, resilience, empowerment, delegation, etc. are traits that need a longer time to be properly developed and integrated within your leadership style than specifics of the function, technical details and so, that despite important, they can be learned faster with the adequate focus.

Expand top leaders minds in looking for what a good successor to their role looks like across experience, leadership, and character. Many times leaders are looking for exact replicas of themselves versus the qualities that will take their organization to the next level.

Executive leadership has multiple capabilities that one needs to possess. While in the team, we might already have few who have 50% of that capabilities, providing opportunities and exposure to build that other 30-40% lies with us as leaders. First and foremost is to give that opportunity, hand hold if required, asses the assess leadership skills, strategic thinking, adaptability, and team collaboration for someone. Alignment with the company's values and long-term goals is very important while identifying the successor for the role followed by developmental opportunities and mentorship. But one thing for sure, no matter which role you play, having a successor all the time is very critical element of how you are able to succeed together.

No início da minha carreira corporativa, tive um grande gestor que me dizia que um bom líder cuida do seu time, mas um grande líder cria sucessores. é notória a dificuldade em se identificar bons sucessores, ent?o sempre deixo claro aos que trabalham junto comigo que n?o tenho limites em compartilhar conhecimento, bastando que queiram tê-lo e dividi-lo comigo; e daí já surgiram inúmeros novos líderes e gestores possivelmente até melhores do que eu. Ainda, como líder, independentemente do nível hierárquico, penso que n?o há como “subir” se n?o tiver alguém para o seu lugar. A vida é uma evolu??o, corporativa ou profissionalmente, com esse ‘singelo’ conselho, tor?o para que ela lhe dê sabedoria em todas essas escolhas!