Evaluation of Succession Planning and Its Impact on Sustaining Organizational Performance
a case study
The problem for the applied dissertation study was that the [client] organization had not actively developed a succession plan for senior leadership and management in order to ensure continuity with implementing the business strategy and maintaining business performance when key leaders in the organization retire, leave the company, or die unexpectedly. Given the complexities of leadership in the 21st century, the skill set needed in order to lead successfully was ever changing, so the organization actively needed to develop leadership skills among its associates. The leadership behaviors that were critical for survival in contemporary organizations and that needed to be developed in this organization included innovation, creativity, adaptability, flexibility, and other change‑oriented goals (Klenke & Lane, 2004).
Since labor resources were becoming scarce, it was more and more difficult for the organization to attract and retain employees in a competitive marketplace. Given these constraints, it was necessary for the organization to emphasize the development of current associates to prepare them to assume leadership roles and face future challenges.
The purpose of the research study was to determine whether or not there was an impact on promotions from within the organization based on the development of leadership competencies identified by the organization. In order to make this determination, a competency profile for desirable leadership capabilities related to senior leadership and management positions in the organization was created. A competency is considered to be a reliable, measurable, relatively enduring characteristic of a person, team, or organization that causes and statistically predicts a measurable level of performance. Competency characteristics include content knowledge, behavior skills, cognitive processing, personality traits, values, motives, and other perceptual capabilities that validly predict some level of performance (Berger & Berger, 2004).
Once the competency profile was developed, the [client] organization used the LAS assessment tool [CCi Leadership Assessment Survey, developed, owned, and marketed by CCi Surveys International] to evaluate current competencies and developmental needs of existing leaders and managers. This process sought to make transparent the skills the organization needed in order to be successful. Once the assessment was completed and the gaps in competencies were identified, the organization had the information that was needed to design a program that ensured the development needs identified were addressed so that future identified leaders would have the desired skill set to lead the organization. This helped to ensure that leadership positions were filled from within the organization as positions became vacant due to associate retirement or turnover.
The researcher's role in the organization was in an external consulting capacity. Previously, the researcher had consulted with the organization on various organizational development issues and had established a working relationship with the leadership team.
In order to answer the question related to the difference in the promotion rate from within the organization, between the treatment and control groups, and after the treatment group had received an assessment and leadership development program, the researcher compared the retention rates and promotion rates of the two groups. During the 6 months subsequent to the leadership training and development program, the treatment group yielded a higher employee retention rate and promotion rate. For the 30 participants in the control group, 25 or 83% were retained, and 2 or 7% received a promotion. For the 30 participants in the treatment group, 29 or 97% were retained, and 4 or 13% received a promotion. In the initial phase of the measurement period, the treatment group performed better than the control group in both measurement areas.
References:
Klenke, K., & Lane, M. (2004). The ambiguity tolerance interface: A modified social cognitive model for leading under uncertainty. Journal of Leadership and Organizational Studies,10(3), 69-81. Retrieved July 19,2005, from Expanded Academic ASAP Plus database.
Berger, D., & Berger, L. (2004). The talent management book. New York: McGraw-Hill.
For more information about this case study and the application of the CCi Leadership Assessment Survey, please contact wendyraehoward@aol.com or CCi Surveys International at larryc@cci4360.com.
