Successor Readiness in the FLOW

Let's be honest: most succession planning still lives in a spreadsheet, an annual talent review, or a meeting that leaders claim is strategic...but often isn't.

Meanwhile, the work keeps moving. Priorities shift. Leaders (including those high-performing successor candidates) burn out. High potentials wait - sometimes too long - for real, growth-focused development.

The answer isn't a bigger process or another tab on the spreadsheet. It's embedding your succession practices into the flow of everyday work - where development happens as the work happens, not adjacent to it.

Global thought leader Josh Bersin popularized the concept of "learning in the flow of work," and I'll borrow and apply it here: succession management works best when it's embedded into everyday decisions, stretch moments, and business rhythms...not treated as an afterthought.

Here's a practical, brass-tacks way to do it...using the word FLOW:

F - Focus on Critical Moments, Not Just Critical Roles

Most succession plans fixate on titles, but strong plans focus on moments that matter. Ask:

• Where do leaders regularly struggle?
• Which decisions, handoffs, or transitions expose risk?
• What roles/functions would truly disrupt the business if left unfilled?
• Which moments or experiences would give our successor(s) needed exposure?

Research is revealing that many organizations over-rely on hierarchy and undervalue business-critical capabilities. Focus strategic development where the value is actually created...which isn't always at the top of the org chart.

L - Learn Through Real Work, Not Through a Hypothetical Program

Sure, internal and external programs have their place, but targeted successor development shouldn't feel like a leadership field trip. Instead:

• Use stretch assignments tied to real business priorities
• Rotate ownership of high-visibility initiatives
• Let successors lead something meaningful, even if it is outside of their current role scope

In 2024 research, McKinsey noted that leadership transitions fail up to 46% of the time when development isn't grounded in real, future-facing capability building. Yikes! That's pretty sobering for something as high-stakes as leader succession. Translation: Simulations may support, but don't replace lived experience.

O - Open the Conversation Earlier (and Wider)

I've talked to many Talent Development and HR colleagues over the years who have expressed frustration with their organizations on how succession is managed...often behind closed doors, or a secret whisper network among a select few. Modern organizations:

• Normalize career and readiness conversations
• Involve leaders as coaches...not gatekeepers
• Make "potential" a discussion, not a label

Transparency increases engagement and retention, especially for emerging leaders (at all levels) who want to know if development and growth opportunities are real or rhetorical. Yes...these conversations can be tricky at times. But they're worth it, and far more effective.

W - Weave Development into Business Rhythms

If succession is only up for discussion during talent review season, it's already behind. Just like the weather, business operations follow seasons, so embed succession conversations into:

• Quarterly business reviews
• Project post-mortems
• Budget planning meetings
• Workforce planning and capability discussions

When we integrate succession conversations into natural operating cadences, we send a message that people are the drivers of a successful organization, now and in the future.

Here's the thing...

Succession in the FLOW isn't about doing more...it's about doing things differently. For HR and Talent leaders, this is your moment to influence your organization's succession strategy from...

• paperwork --> practice
• risk mitigation --> growth strategy
• an HR initiative --> a collaborative business driver

Your organization's future isn't built on a spreadsheet. It's built in the work...every day.