As published in the Winnipeg Sun. With the scare of the upcoming H1N1 pandemic taking centre stage, preparations for this oncoming assault is a priority for most organizations. It’s only normal. But, at the same time, sit back and think! H1N1 is not going to be your biggest problem… in fact the H1N1 issue is essentially a short term problem. In my view as a professional executive search consultant, your biggest problem will be leadership succession and general workforce planning.  After all, CEOs, Executive Directors, and general staff for that matter will be retiring in droves, and, if not, they may be recruited to more lucrative or challenging roles. Still again, some people will simply jump ship!

What’s the result? Your organization, be it a business, a professional association or a not-for-profit, will become wholly short staffed, employee knowledge will walk out the door and, try as hard as you might, you may not be able to find solid, highly-skilled replacements. While this doesn’t sound much like an H1N1 emergency, believe me, these failings can be equally as important as the current H1N1 scare and will do the same amount and/or more damage to organizations in the long run.

The lack of a succession plan and/or a workforce plan places an organization at substantial risk, in particular as it refers to the replacement of senior executives.  Since the invention of the “lean work machine”, there aren’t many middle management candidates readily available to step into senior leadership shoes. Not only that, younger people don’t have the same values as the baby boomers did,  instead, they want family time and life work balance.

So, what can be done? The following tips might be of assistance:

Develop a competency/skills map – identify all of the skills/competencies/talents within your organization and then forecast what is required for the future. Identify the gaps, the surpluses and the future requirements. Don’t forget to examine the skills and competencies your employees have and use in their personal/private lives versus their workplace.

Create an employee database - create an EXCEL spreadsheet of all employees and their respective skills. Slot two to three employees into potential roles for every one of your assignments. Create some kind of grading system to indicate whether or not the employee is job ready currently and/or if he/she needs further training.

Create Professional Development Plans – professional development can occur in multiple ways including mentoring, coaching, formal training and project-based stretch assignments or on-the-job training. Examine and plan for the best learning approach for each employee and then create a personal development plan.

Recruit to fill the gaps – in many cases you will need to recruit externally to fill gaps as sometimes there is no way in which to train within your organization to meet the needs. In this case you would be wise to utilize the services of an external search professional who can match your skills and cultural needs. One advantage of this is that it saves time and, typically, these individuals are already in touch with key professionals in your industry.

View a Succession Culture as a priority – succession planning isn’t just about those top executives; it is the responsibility of every manager in every department. After all, your organization won’t be able to function without specialized teams of professionals. And, if this type of team isn’t in place, it can quickly derail the success of a business.

While H1N1 might be an urgent priority, the lack of executive and general succession planning is simply a ticking time bomb. I am confident that this is a risk that no company should want to take. The success strategy in this case is to develop an integrated strategic human resource plan that ensures the recruitment of the right talent, at the right time at the right place.