Successor Planning

Definition

Identifying and developing employees to take over key roles. The executive version of hoping someone else wants the next-level job.

Example Usage

Their successor planning for the CFO role consisted of hoping the VP of Finance would stay long enough to learn the job.

Origin

Emerged from management succession theory in the 1960s-70s.

Fun Fact

Companies with formal successor planning have 40% better retention of key talent—yet 85% of companies have no formal plan.

Source: Succession planning and talent management

Related Terms

Intermediate

High-Potential Employee (High-Po)

An employee identified as having significant advancement potential. It's the corporate version of being chosen as one of the special kids.

👥 Human Resources

Intermediate

reprisal

Corporate revenge served cold, usually in the form of passive-aggressive performance reviews or mysterious project reassignments. The art of professionally getting even without technically breaking any rules. Think of it as workplace karma with a paper trail.

👥 Human Resources

Intermediate

Skill Gap Analysis

Assessment of the difference between current employee capabilities and those required for organizational goals. Also known as 'realizing we hired people for jobs we never defined.'

👥 Human Resources

Intermediate

Retention

The corporate art of convincing employees not to leave, usually attempted only after they've already accepted another offer. Retention strategies include counter-offers, pizza parties, and the classic "but we're a family" speech.

👥 Human Resources

Intermediate

employer value proposition

The unique set of benefits and experiences an organization offers employees in exchange for their skills and effort. It's the answer to 'why would anyone work here?' that marketing writes and reality contradicts.

👥 Human Resources

Beginner

behavioral interview

An interview technique asking candidates to describe specific past situations rather than hypotheticals, based on the radical theory that past behavior predicts future performance. Questions always start with 'Tell me about a time when...'

👥 Human Resources

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