Chapter 10

1. Chapter 10 Succession and talent management

2. Learning objectives After reading this chapter you will be able to: • discuss the concept of succession management • identify key principles for effectiveness in succession and talent management • outline the six steps in a succession and talent management process • identify challenges in implementing succession and talent management • consider how succession and talent management can contribute to strategic human resource management in a sport organisation

3. What is succession management? • Succession management is a comprehensive set of assessment and development processes that support the attraction, development, reward and retention of talented individuals, from entry level positions through to senior management.

4. Succession management • incorporates a broad range of standardised performance evaluation methods and gathers information on employee and volunteer performance from multiple perspectives. • is designed to supplement subjective manager judgements of potential with independent objective assessment data related to key succession criteria

5. Succession management can include: • senior leadership roles • critical roles within the sport organization • professional or specialist roles • entire cohorts of staff or volunteers

6. Strategies for effective succession management • Obtain support from the CEO and senior Management • Gain line management and staff support • Keep it simple and tailored to unique organizational needs • Make sure it is flexible and linked with the strategic business plan • Link it to the human resources review process • Use well-developed competencies and objective reviews of candidates • incorporate employee input • Make a part of the broader management development effort • Include plans for development job assignments • Integrated with other human resource systems • Emphasize accountability and follow-up. (Eastman, 1995)

7. 6 steps in succession management • designing the process • ensuring strategic integration • assessing the current situation • identifying and assessing talented individuals • implementation: planning and undertaking development • evaluation

8. 1. Design the process • define a business case for succession management • ensure transparency and confidentiality • build in staff feedback systems • develop a communication strategy

9. 2. Ensure strategic integration • identify roles/jobs critical to organisation's success • identify distinctive leadership capabilities • align with training and development and performance management systems

10. 3. Assess the current situation • conduct a risk assessment of potential departures from existing critical roles • determine the extent of any pending position shortage by projecting requirements, internal mobility and attrition over the next 3-5 years • Use relevant succession and talent management strategies to fill the gaps identified between current capability for key roles and future requirements

11. 4. Identify and assess potential • Outline the capabilities required for effectiveness in critical roles • map essential skills and competencies identified using consistent & objective criteria • also use criteria to identify high-performance and high-potential candidates with advancement potential

12. Accurate identification & assessment Use existing performance management data such as: • biographical data • current performance • observed behaviour • 360° feedback and formal appraisal outcomes • interviews to determine career preferences • behavioural interviews • feedback from a range of senior managers performance • external assessments such as assessment centres

13. 5. Implementation • outline the types of roles or experiences which may be offered as accelerated development opportunities • develop each individual’s required capabilities through a program of learning experiences • development opportunities include: targeted job assignments, managing a project, a formal training program, access to a mentor etc

14. 6. Evaluation • establish clear timeframes • for the organisation, evaluation could be in terms of whether organisational risk has been reduced or minimised. • for the individual, evaluation includes self-assessment about the degree of capability development and demonstrated changes in performance and behaviour in the workplace.

15. 6 succession derailers • Inaccurate information and limited choices • A focus on only one person for each specific role • Poor experiential development • Misunderstanding what is needed for future success • Failure to execute and follow through • Lack of accountability

16. 6 trends in succession and talent management programs • Expand succession management to lower levels of the organization. • Do a complete success profile for assessing readiness • Assess the whole person for development purposes • Select/deploy talent by leveraging an aging workforce • Accelerate development through applied learning and mentoring networks • Focus/drive performance through measurement

17. Summary • Succession and talent management provides a process by which high potential and valuable staff are recruited, developed, rewarded and retained by the sport organization • There are six key steps to a succession management program: designing the process; ensuring strategic integration; assessing the current situation; identifying and assessing talented individuals; implementation; planning and undertaking development; and evaluation.