New ATD Research finds that organizations are putting more importance on creating a successful succession plan, but what are the key actions that L&D professionals need to do to ensure that their organization’s process will be effective?

Genevieve Roberts, national managing director of leadership and organizational development at Gallagher, offers this advice for talent development professionals who are looking to implement a new succession planning process:

• Be open about what positions will be included in the succession plan.

• Clearly delineate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to be successful in each position in the succession plan.

• Engage all stakeholders, especially senior leadership, early in the process.

• Look ahead multiple years, not just at the immediate future, when determining the organization’s needs.

• Incorporate technology, such as a human resources information system, to automate the process and track metrics.

ATD’s Succession Planning: Preparing Organizations for the Future took an in-depth look at barriers to succession planning, positions addressed in succession planning, methods used to identify internal candidates, and the recruitment of succession planning candidates.

A free webinar on the research will take place on Tuesday, October 4 at 2 p.m. ET.