Workforce and Succession Planning
Questions and answers
Recently, there has been much discussion and concern surrounding the anticipated surge in retirement rates. Every organization needs to take the time to assess their current workforce to identify their level of risk. Understanding how many staff are currently eligible for retirement, as well as how many fill mission critical positions, is an essential step in mitigating the impact of mass retirements. Organizations need to ask themselves the following questions:
- What are our mission critical occupations?
- Who makes up these positions?
- How many individuals are in each grade/performance level?
- What are the competencies necessary to succeed in these occupations?
- Where are our competency gaps?
- What is in place to develop proficiency in the necessary competencies?
- Who is on track to advance in these career paths?
Once organizations have identified mission critical occupations and the necessary competencies, they have a solid foundation for moving forward. From that point on, they can start identifying potential successors to those eligible for retirement and begin implementing training and development programs to ensure appropriate knowledge management and successful workforce transitions.