Many organizations today are faced with a talent pool that may not meet their future needs for leadership. Frequently, leaders are surprised when two events occur:

1) a high-performing individual leaves for another job, and there are no ready-now replacements and

2) a new manager or executive fails in his or her assignment.

Often, the problem lies in not adequately identifying the employee’s talents and more importantly, not identifying ways that talent could be used in the organization.

In a company’s plan for Talent Management, each employee should be evaluated for his/her potential. With such a data base of talent, a Succession Plan can be devised, where training and development can be plotted over time and scheduled in order to grow each generation of management and company leaders.

Compass-OI Partners will help you to assess your current talent identification and succession planning processes. We make recommendations consistent with agreed-upon goals and help implement strategies that identify high-potential leaders and plan for succession in key positions. Tactics may include:

• Reviewing how your organization evaluates talent and sets expectations for performance

• Assessment tools and guided questions developed to fit your organization’s culture and needs to identify high potentials

• Communication and training of managers

• Development and implementation of the performance-potential matrix

• Plans to monitor progress

At Compass- OI Partners, our approach is to partner with our clients by first listening, then questioning and only then suggesting tailored approaches to solve talent identification and succession planning challenges. We invite you to discuss with us your needs for a specific position or individual or for a more extensive review of how your organization manages talent.

In order for a company to not only be strong — BUT STAY STRONG, the leadership needs to have a strategic, well-implemented succession plan.