Plan Today to Lead Tomorrow
In preparation for my talk on Succession Planning on December 6th, I’m going to publish a series of blog articles on the topic.
Let’s start with some definitions. When people hear the words succession plan all too often, they think of the near future. “It’s something we do when someone says they are thinking of retiring or they give notice.”
There’s a much healthier way to think about this. Succession Planning is a proactive strategy better labeled “talent planning.” As leaders, we should be thinking of strategies to win with our talent; from thinking about who gives us a competitive advantage to those who are detracting from value creation. We need to plan for unexpected as well as planned departures. It’s about remaining agile and ensuring business continuity.
Let’s also consider the definition of strategic thinking. Job ads tout the need for strategic thinking and it's something we evaluate in pre-employment assessments and talent surveys. However, when I hear people saying they want to be more strategic I’m not certain everyone understands what it means.
Strategic thinking is a thought process focused on analyzing critical factors that influence business, team, or individual success. Think… SWOT analysis.
The most valuable piece of advice I received in my HRBP career was when one of my leaders said to me, “I pay you to think. If you are completing tasks all day…then I’ve got you positioned wrong.” This was a relief to hear because past managers gave more credit for butt-in-seat time rather than strategic thinking.
All too often we get caught up in fighting fires because, somehow, that seems easier than making the time to think… or even worse, we are incentivized more to fight the fires than we are to come up with new strategies.
Three quick ways to build your strategic thinking muscle:
· Schedule time on your calendar to identify trends and plan for the future.
· Listen to subject matter experts and read articles about your industry.
· Explore and evaluate the consequences of different strategies.
Join me at a TAP TALK session or presentation: https://www.talent-advancement.com/events