A Manager’s Ultimate Guide To Effective Succession Planning

It's the process of identifying the key roles on your team and figuring out how you’ll fill them when they’re left vacant (whether that’s because of turnover, promotions, restructuring, or something else).

Think of it as future-proofing your team. Rather than staring slack-jawed at your org chart when one of your team’s managers moves to a director position, you’ll have at least a loose plan in place for how to move forward.

• Understand what the future could look like. There are aspects of the future that you can plan for.
• Dive into the details of each position. You’ll be surprised by how many responsibilities are flying under the radar.
• Identify your options: Hire a new employee, move an internal employee, divide responsibilities among team members, outsource work to external vendors, eliminate the position._
• Make your tentative plan. You’ve determined where you're headed, who does what, and what choices you have to fill role gaps. Now, all that’s left to do is figure out what your ideal plan looks like.