About Talent Management and Succession Planning

Every company, organization, brand, and business gets to a point when a generation of leaders have to step down and allow others to take the lead and initiative in handling their affairs. When this happens, the importance of having a bench is quite clear. The bench strength of any business is very much important for the continuation of activities.Talent management and succession planning are, in a broad sense, the careful identification, selection, nurturing, and development of talents for future leadership positions.

Talent management for succession is arguably the most vital part of the HR job profile, and if rightly done, the whole company stands to benefit from it.

Talent Management Process

The process involved in talent management are:

1. Understanding the requirements: Every position, no matter how similar, has its own specific description, title, and needs. Understanding the requirements of each position is important in helping you identify talent traits from employees that match those job requirements. For example, if you understand that a job position requires deep foresight, it would help you identify candidates who look ahead before making decisions and not those satisfied with short-term effects.
2. Sourcing talents: This involves searching for the best talents matching a job requirement form the pool of employees in the company. Sometimes, the talent (person) you want might not be an employee yet and you have to extend your search through specific and tailored pre-hire assessment tests.
3. Attracting talents: Getting the people you want to work with you is a whole process on its own. You have to proactively but subtly attract them and build a natural pull. It is crucial to develop a career-oriented relationship with them in order to successfully develop their talent.
4. Selecting the talent: Of course, not everyone invited will be selected. This presents a problem. What are the selection criteria? How best to go about the selection process to ensure that the most suitable candidate is not eliminated by a trivial or unrelated test exercise?
5. Training and development: This is the stage where much time and effort will be spent. The selected candidates are nurtured and developed over time to hone their skills and sharpen their talents.
6. Retention and integration: Candidates have to be integrated into the culture of the company. They also have to be induced to stay, grow, and become a part of the staff. This is generally followed by periodic performance appraisals and career sustenance.