In order to put the proper elements in place for your succession planning, you should be in tune with critical metrics for the business. There are several different factors that you should explore with regard to your succession planning. If you’re an owner of a business, here’s the steps to take before you create and implement a succession plan. Make sure you are knowledgeable about these metrics first, as it can help determine the direction of your planning.  

1. How many positions have been filled by succession candidates already? If there are open positions, consider filling them by highest priority. A critical position can prove challenging if there’s no person tapped to fill it in the future.

2. Are there enough candidates in the hiring pipeline to fill additional positions? If not, this is a clue you need to extend your reach.

3. What stage of implementation are you at in the pipeline with regard to succession planning overall? It’s common to get stuck after the initial creation of such a massive plan, so it’s worth it to do a check in about what you’ve been able to accomplish so far.

4. What are the metrics for the departments or jobs managed by succession candidates? If there is an indication of poor performance or a learning curve, use this opportunity to train those individuals while you are still playing an active role in the business.

5. Are you holding managers accountable for succession metrics?  Make sure you have had the conversation with key managers about their role in adding talent to the pipeline or not. They need to be clear about their role in the succession planning process.