New research recently published by human resources specialist XpertHR has revealed that formal succession planning is not a high priority for most employers. In fact, less than one in four companies (23.3%) have a formal process in place for developing successors for key roles. However, the larger the organisation, the more likely it is to have such a structure in place.
The research also showed that 42.5% of employers have never developed a succession planning process, despite the fact that finding successors to fill important roles within a company is now more important than ever given today's harsh economic climate.
The most common reasons cited for the absence of a succession plan were a lack of resources or HR expertise, or that it simply wasn't a business priority for the company. Many employers stated that their low level of staff turnover or the relatively small scale of their business meant that succession planning was not an important issue for them.
While many organisations did not have a formal plan in place, a significant number (31.5%) reported that they preferred a more informal approach to the issue. All of these companies had at least one type of process or technique which they used to approach succession planning, and these included training, mentoring and performance appraisal.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
