How do you conduct talent reviews and succession planning?

In my experience, it is very important to define your Talent Management philosophy before initiating any talent reviews / TRB or succession planning conversations. Some of the important aspects to consider includes defining what is Talent for your organization, how are you measuring / capturing performance and potential (framework), alignment between the talent strategy with your organization strategy etc. Reviewing this model on a regular basis is critical to ensure that your talent strategy is relevant and is aligned with your business strategy.

Talent reviews should be held in alignment with Business imperatives. Annual organisational reviews of critical and leadership positions are necessary to create the right framework for successful talent identification. This ensures that there "right holes" for the "right pegs". Parameters for determining "high potential" must have due regard for diversity and emerging themes in People Practice like Neuro-divergence. People practitioners need to guard against base definitions of the characteristics of "Talent" so these do not inadvertently become non-inclusive in nature.

First thing first, define what is talent means to your organisation as per the future needs. Then define the behaviours and competencies required as per the role and future requirements, Next comes the talent reviews, bottom up approach is always useful. Before talent reviews, have a talent calibration.

When embarking on talent review and succession planning journeys few things that always help are: ? Start with clarity! Define what the purpose and goals are. ? Identify the competencies, skills, and behaviors crucial for your current and future talent. What’s missing what you want to see.. your north star in a way ? Measure and compare performance and potential consistently across the board. (easier said than done but that should be the aim) ? Align your talent strategy seamlessly with your business vision. ? And the most important is to establish a common language and framework for assessment, like the 9-box grid or talent pipeline model or talent review.

Collect and assess relevant information: - Performance Data: Gather performance evaluations, feedback, and ratings for each employee under review. - Potential Assessment: Evaluate employee potential based on competencies, skills, career aspirations, and readiness for future roles. - Comparative Analysis: Conduct benchmarking and comparative analysis to identify top performers, high potentials, and developmental areas.

Collecting insight from the associates being reviewed is very important. From my experience, the associate can often be cut out of the conversation; their desires and dreams are not known. Management is then having hypothetical conversations vs. realistic ones. By asking the associate for their goals up front, management is empowered to craft developmental plans that are advantageous to both associate and business - a win-win! The associate feels cared for and listened to, which is helpful for engagement and retention.

Identify the critical roles especially for the core of your industry within your organization that are essential for its success. These are typically leadership positions or roles with significant impact on business outcomes. Determine the key competencies, skills, and experiences required for each position

Incorporate diversity and inclusion metrics into your data analysis to ensure a comprehensive understanding of talent dynamics. By evaluating aspects like cultural competencies, leadership inclusivity, and employee engagement among diverse groups, organizations can identify untapped potential and barriers to success. This holistic approach not only enriches talent reviews and succession planning but also drives innovation and reflects the diverse perspectives of your customer base. #DiversityInTalent #InclusiveLeadership

The power of data for talent success is crucial, as without it, the real conversations needed to identify the right fit and gaps would not occur. However, it's important to distinguish between critical and key roles. Leadership is key; however, some roles are critical for regular operations, without which a business would come to a standstill. It's important not to overlook these roles and to ensure that the right successors are identified and developed.

9-box talent review is ubiquitous for a reason. The tool effectively evaluates past performance, current skill set, and future potential in the context of an organization's design. Adopting a conversation-based working-meeting model provides more nuanced insights beyond pre-worked materials. In my experience, the definition of "Performance" is easily understood. It is "Potential" that needs further clarity with a role-agnostic, temporal definition aligning across reviewers. The lens of attrition risk, impact and diversity are essential for a holistic view. Talent Review is an input for Succession planning. Scenario-based plans with defined timeframes, actionable steps and development programs are important for a successful succession plan.

Evaluate the existing talent pool to identify high-potential employees who exhibit the desired qualities and have the potential to assume key positions in the future. This assessment can include performance appraisals, feedback from managers, 360-degree assessments, and interviews.

Facilitate constructive discussions: - Preparation: Prepare agendas, review materials, and brief all stakeholders on the objectives and criteria. - Feedback Exchange: Foster open dialogue and feedback exchange among managers, HR, and leaders during talent review meetings. - Action Planning: Based on the review outcomes, identify each employee's development needs, career paths, and succession opportunities.

It is important to be mindful of who is invited into the room and having clear roles defined for the facilitator who may be positioned in an HR function. The facilitator may be ranked lower than other participants organizationally, but they play a vital role in ensuring the conversation is purposeful, fact-based, non-judgmental, and inclusive. These conversations can often be influenced by unconscious bias and the facilitator places a key role in identifying and prompting new ideas and ways of looking at successors. By actively engaging in the conversation, people who may have previously been overlooked can be seen and valued for what they bring to the table.

Leverage Agile methodologies in talent review meetings to enhance collaboration and adaptability. Implement regular, iterative discussions rather than annual reviews, allowing for timely adjustments in talent development and succession planning. This approach supports a continuous learning culture, where feedback and actions are dynamically aligned with changing business needs and employee aspirations. Encourage cross-functional participation to gain diverse insights and foster a shared responsibility for talent growth. #AgileHR #ContinuousImprovement

In my experience, we decided not to limit ourselves to obvious Succession planning, but also consider the journey of our successors as Top Talents, as Gems of the company. We created an even broader flow of how we treat our Talents even if we have no vacancies in the next 1-2 years. Starting from the rules to give them priority in any hot projects / international assignments, to the Top Talent development framework with various career tools and workshops to utilize our talents.

In my experience, succession plans are position-based or pool-based. This means that the organisation needs to identify the most critical roles and criteria that make a good candidate for the role. Based on the criteria, you can then identify talents in the organisation that meet those skill and experience expectations to varying degrees of readiness. These talents can be high potentials but do not necessarily have to be.

Develop strategies for talent pipeline: - Identify Succession Pools: Identify key roles and critical positions for succession planning. - Succession Mapping: Map potential successors for critical roles, considering readiness, skills, and development needs. - Development Plans: Create personalized development plans and career paths for high-potential employees and future leaders.

Based on the talent review outcomes, create succession plans that outline potential successors for key positions. This involves identifying primary and backup candidates for each role, assessing their readiness, and developing strategies to address any gaps in the succession pipeline.

In my opinion the important factor of succession planning after you implement the succession planning is: Support transitions: When a key position becomes vacant, support the transition of the successor into the role. Provide necessary training and support to ensure a smooth transition and set the successor up for success. Monitor and evaluate their performance in the new role, providing feedback and developmental opportunities as needed.

Adopt a people-first approach in implementing and monitoring talent development actions. Foster an environment where feedback is seen as a gift, and mentorship and coaching are integral to everyday work. Utilize Agile methodologies to track progress, allowing for quick pivots and continuous improvement in talent strategies. Celebrate small wins and learning opportunities alike, reinforcing a culture of appreciation and growth. Regularly revisiting and adjusting plans ensures alignment with evolving business and employee needs. #PeopleFirst #AgileTalentDevelopment

Evaluation of successors according to success patterns Now that you've established success patterns for key positions, it's time to evaluate successors against those patterns. This will help you find out whether potential successors have the knowledge, experience, background, personal qualities and competencies required for the position. In order to make a useful comparison between potential successors and models of success, you need to identify the specific characteristics of each. You can easily do this by using templates and deciding what skill level is required for each one.

There are many facets to a story than seemingly visible... this parable also connotes- we should be open to look at options which may have been possibly overlooked. While organizations grow through Talent, it thrives on things beyond it. Aspects about culture, ownership and loyalty to stay put in tough times are built in testing times and it is prudent we define and include reference points to these qualities which enable throw evidence on possible 'talent' beyond analytics. This is a perspective.

With succession planning, from my experience as a talent management professional, one has to be wary of leaving it at the 'planning stage' A plan remains a plan until it is executed. Therefore succession planning from an execution perspective is: 1. Identify key positions or roles that you need to have back ups for. 2. Identify the critical experiences needed in the roles (not just training alone, but also on the job assignments) 3. Identifying employees who first off are solid performers; but have displayed the behaviours that point to the potential to move into more complex/senior roles. 4. Documenting plans to develop those employees and tracking the completion of those plans.

Create a development plan At this point, you should be able to assess whether the potential successor has the desired skill level, and whether there is a large gap between their actual skill level and the desired skill level. The greater the gap, the more time, resources, and training is required to prepare the potential successor for the position. If there is a large gap, you can consider another potential successor. You need to assess each person's skill level and gaps in order to select the most suitable replacement. Based on skill level and gaps, you can create a variety of training programs. Use the chart below to find out which substitutes need more training and what kind of training programs.

Strategic discussions for building leadership pipeline have centred around multiple themes over the years . Here are a few points to consider: Leadership competencies still matter Globalisation / internationalisation of leadership concepts, constructs, and development methods Role of technology Increasing interest in the integrity and character of leaders New ways of thinking about the nature of leadership and leadership development Shift to defining leaders by influence, not role High-performance organisations (HPOs) to allow managers to self-select involvement in global leadership development programs Business performance as a measure of global leadership development effectiveness