Succession Planning Essay

Leadership is a facet of management. It is just one of the many assets a successful manager must possess. The main aim of a manager is to maximize the output of the organization through administrative implementation. To achieve this managers must undertake the four functions of management: planning, organization, leading and controlling. In some cases leadership is just one important component of the leading function. Predpall (1994) said, "Leaders must let vision, strategies, goals, and values be the guide-post for action and behavior rather than attempting to control others". In some circumstances, leadership is not required. For example, self-motivated groups may not require a single leader and may find leaders dominating. The fact that a leader is not always required proves that leadership is just an asset and is not essential.

The six basic styles of leadership presented (Coercive, Authoritative, Affiliative, Democratic, and Coaching) can have either a net positive or net negative affect on an organizations climate. The basis for being

Leadership can be defined as the process of identifying a goal, motivating others, and make them to achieve the mutually goals (Giltinane, 2013). According to Humphreys (2002), successful leaders do this by applying their leadership knowledge and skills. A good leadership is not only good at management, but also use different leadership styles in different situations. A successful corporation must has a good leader who have the flexible ability which can provide a suitable leadership to make the company successful. Furthermore, there have no perfect leadership styles in the world. Different leader have different leadership styles which also have the different strengths and weaknesses (Ali & Waqar, 2013). Leaders need to consider

Grojean, Resick & Diskson (2004) suggest that leaders are responsible for facilitating their follower’s to become capable and guide them to improving their capabilities and strengths. Differentiating between different leadership styles can be done in a number of ways. It was determined that the traditional styles of leaders include authoritian (autocratic), democratic, permissive (laissez-faire) and bureaucratic (Viinamäki, 2009).

A1. Leadership Style Upon conducting research, it is clear that the definition of “leadership” is not agreed upon. It is fluid, based upon many perceptions, situations, and surroundings. According to Robinson (2010), adopting a specific style of leadership is rather futile as it is, “contingent on the personal traits of the leader, the people being led, and the nature of the activity.” Tools are available to help guide potential leaders in determining a preferred style of leadership. For example, utilizing the “Leadership Self-Assessment

There are several factors that will influence the choice of leadership styles and behaviours in workplace situations, some of the factors may develop

Succession planning is a standardized approach to an organization success in building a powerful leadership and a talented group of employees to ensure superior leadership continuation. It is essential that ABC Aircraft propose a succession plan in order to continue business beyond the next generation of leaders. Whether through private owner transfer to senior management or a leadership position transferred to a qualified family member, the purpose of the succession plan is to make it easier to continue the business success. By implementing a succession plan procedure, ABC Aircraft is preparing for a crucial decision that will have an immediate and direct impact on long-term aircraft business success in every area of aviation.

Similar to Finkelde, Samuel Chand and Dale Bronner also point out that preparing an organization for future leadership transitions can also bring benefits today. Succession planning ensures that “leaders and managers at all levels remain in sync with company goals, have defined career paths and developmental opportunities, and prepares you to respond effectively when key employees leave unexpectedly. In addition to developing leaders, a good succession plan ensures that your wisdom and knowledge transcend the current generation.” “When implemented properly, succession planning creates a leadership culture within the organization. A true leadership culture is one that identifies and develops people who are able to function across an organization, who are cross-trained in a variety of responsibilities, and are ready to adapt to a new role with competence and confidence,” say Chand and Bronner. The benefits of succession planning are for now and later.

Other forms of leadership styles that are known to exist derive from the Leadership Style Inventory (LSI) developed by Rowe, Reardon, and Bennis (1995). The inventory identifies four basic styles; commanding, logical, inspirational and supportive. The differences in style used by leaders are based on the following two questions: How adaptive are leaders when dealing with the issues they face? How do leaders communicate with, persuade, and energize employees in the process of change?

The contents and assignment in this course has helped me understand the various theories of leadership and how different leadership styles can have a negative or positive effect on followers and organizations. The leadership theories helped me understand the concept of leadership better because it educates me on the different leadership options that are available. Leadership and followership is not based on specific characteristics. Leaders must draw from things and approaches to find the right style. A follower’s attitude determines the way a leader leads. According to Johnson (2011) “Being a good follower means ensuring your boss is supported, but only if he is making optimum decisions”.

Succession planning is "a strategy for passing each key leadership role within a company to someone else in such a way that the company continues to operate after the incumbent leader is no longer in control" (Investopedia, 2016). Quest Diagnostics is "passionate about developing innovative, ground-breaking tests, products and tools to enhance patient care, provide value to our clients, and transform information into knowledge and insights" (Quest Diagnostics, 2000-2015). Due to the commitment to its customers and company a succession plan must be in place to avoid any interruptions during transition periods. Like all plans, a succession plan

Succession planning is a strategic approach to ensure that necessary talent and skills will be available when needed, and that essential knowledge and abilities will be maintained when employees in critical positions leave. The smooth operation and future development of IT systems are indispensable to a company. Succession planning in the IT department is critical because you want to make sure the business is always prepared and protected while the technology’s role as a business enabler continues to grow. It is also particularly important in high tech because the field is so specialized and ever changing. An executive can never be in a position where he/she is leaving the business, worried about getting the support the organization will

As leaders of organizations retire, decide to change career paths or suddenly become incapacitated, their positions must be assumed by other similarly qualified persons. These may be chosen within the ranks of the company or hired from the outside. Whatever form this may take, it would be assumed that certain criteria and conditions form the basis for choice of a successor. Describing the different pathways that can be chosen to ensure attain this objective, succession planning is defined as the deliberate application of mentoring, coaching and grooming of individuals with identified potentials, in helping the organization achieve its goals, as they advance their careers (Carriere, Muise, Cummings, & Newburn-Cook, 2009). The outcome of a good succession planning process would therefore mean that an organization would is likely to sustain retain its strategic orientation and be profitable. The outcome of poor succession planning however, most often results in poor performance, a high leadership turnover and overall organizational instability (Charam, 2005). Below, the challenges inherent in determining which individuals should be promoted in the company, as well as the factors to be considered when selecting candidates for leadership succession are presented. Also, the main pillars of a growth-focused succession planning process, the assessment types that could be used for the selection process, and best practices that would ascertain quality are addressed.

In a publication by HR Council (hrcouncil.ca), it’s made known that succession planning is a continuing supply of qualified, motivated people (or a process to identify them), who are prepared to take over when current senior staff, and other key employees leave the organization (HR Council, 2017).

Succession planning is a process for identifying and developing internal people with the potential to fill key business leadership positions in the company. Succession planning increases the availability of experienced and capable employees that help them to prepare themselves to assume these roles as an when they become available.