Chapter 11

CAREER AND SUCCESSION PLANNING

EXCEL BOOKS

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11

Chapter

ANNOTATED OUTLINE11-2

The concept of career

A career comprises of a series of work related activities, that offer continuity, order and meaning to a person’s life. The underlying idea behind a career is that a person can shape his destiny through a number of well planned and well timed, positive steps. The success of one’s career, therefore, depends on the individual more than anything else.

Career And Succession Planning

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Career: Important features

A career develops over time

The success of one's career depends, most often, on one's own careful planning and timely steps taken at a right time

The important element in one's career is experiencing psychological success.

The typical career of a person today would probably include many positions and transitions.


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Career stages

A career includes many positions, stages and transitions just as a

person’s life does.


High

L o w 25 35 50 60 70

Per

form

ance

Exploration Establish- M id career Late career Declinement

From college First job W ill performance The elder Preparingto wo rk and being increase or s tatespe rson fo r

accep ted begin to retirementdecline?

Age

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Exploration: the transition that occurs in mid-twenties as one looks at work after college education, seeking answer to various questions about careers from teachers, friends etc.

Establishment: this is the stage where one begins the search for work,picks up the first job, commits mistakes and learns thereafter.

Mid-career: Between 35 and 50 one is typically confronted with a plateaued career, where your maturity and experience are still valued but there is the nagging feeling of having lost the initial fire in the belly

Late career: This is the stage where one relaxes a bit and plays an elderly role, offering advice to younger ones as to how to avoid career mistakes and grow continually.

Decline: This is the stage where one is constantly reminded of retirement, after a series of hits and misses.


Career stages

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Golden rules to be kept in mind while searching for a job


1. List all your wins and achievements, then draw a second list from it – highlighting different aspects of your personality. Do not underplay your achievements.

2. Seek help from all your contacts. Asking for help during job hunt is like asking for directions when you are lost. It is better to ask for directions than to stay lost.

3. Your resume should not be a condensed biographical sketch (nor a razzle- dazzle document) of your life and work. It must reveal your experiences, diverse skills

and vast knowledge in an appropriate manner.

4. Be ready to respond positively (“I can do that”) to tricky questions probing your knowledge and experience in a different area. Having a “can do” attitude can sometimes be more important than the actual experience. This way, one is sure to get at least interesting work where one can learn and get ahead.

5. Be it a war or an interview, before actually going full throttle, one needs to plan and prepare well and at the same time watch out for the unexpected. The best way out is to arm oneself with answers for all the possible questions.

Cont…

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6. Try not to be everything in an interview. Most candidates try too hard in an interview and are very accommodating. Don’t be. The most commonly asked question during an interviews is “what could you contribute to this organisation?” The usual answer given is ‘whatever you need’. This just shows your desperation. Guard against this.

7. Negotiate salary, benefits and working conditions clearly, keeping realistic picture of your own fair market value and the current economic climate in mind. Most experts believe that a candidate should guard against winning a salary tug-of-war at the expense of losing the goodwill of his interviewer.

8. Lost out on a job, no problem. It is always a good idea to call your interviewer and ask him for feedback on the reasons why you were not hired.

(P. Dalmia CEO, JobsAhead.com; Collectors’ Series, Business World, 21.1.2002)


Golden rules to be kept in mind while searching for a job

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How to get off to a flying start in your new job?

According to William Ellis, the following strategies help a person get off to a flying start in a new position.

Make yourself visible early: Try a novel tactic, use a stunningly different strategy or follow a route that’s generally avoided by most others. Try anything so as to get noticed.

Overkill that first assignment: In your first assignment, set impossible targets for yourself – which others can’t even think of in their wildest dreams and deliver results faster than others.

Get the lay of the land: Get as much information as possible about people, processes and activities in your work spot – at an amazing speed and become a quick and authoritative information source.

Say “sure” and figure out how later: Management values the new employee who grabs a challenge and runs with it. Try to get over the hurdles somehow – through a painful process of trial and error and come back with winning solutions

Cont…

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Accelerate your enthusiasm: An enthusiastic newcomer can spark a whole department. Yet some days your enthusiasm will run low. There is a remedy, however; if you want to be enthusiastic, act enthusiastic. Inner enthusiasm

follows, and it will have an echo effect on colleagues and bosses. Even cynical old hands want to help an enthusiastic new person.

Dare to Change the Entrenched Method: Try to challenge the traditional old ways of doing things. Stretch yourself to find those creative ways that save lot of organisational time, energies and resources.

The greatest advantage of the fast start on a new job is the early creation of a winning mystique. Even if you were a little slow in the beginning, nothing says, you can’t go to work tomorrow morning and act as if it was your first day on a new job. Better late than never?

Source: W. Ellis, “Get off to a fast start in your new Job,” Reader’s Digest, Win@Work, 2001.

How to get off to a flying start in your new job?

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Career anchors


These are distinct patterns of self-perceived talents, attitudes, motives and values that guide and stabilise a person’s career after several years of real world experiences.

More about eight career anchors Managerial competence

Technical competence

Security

Creativity

Autonomy

Dedication to a cause

Pure challenge

Life style

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Career planning


Career planning is the process by which one selects career goals and the path to achieve those goals. Career planning, it should be noted here, is a prerequisite to effective human resource planning.

Why career planning? Career planning seeks to meet the following objectives

Attract and retain talent

Use human resources properly and achieve greater productivity

Reduce employee turnover

Improve employee morale and motivation

Meet the current and future human resource needs of the organisation

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Identify individual needs and aspirations

Analyse career opportunities

Align employee needs with available career opportunities

Develop action plans

Carry out periodic review


The process of career planning

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Career Development


Career development consists of the personal actions one undertakes to

achieve a career plan. The actions for career development may be initiated

by the individual himself or by the organisation

Individual career development: Some of the important steps that could help

employees achieve their career goals could be listed thus;

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Performance

Exposure

Networking

Leveraging

Loyalty

Mentors and sponsors

Key subordinates

Expanding capabilities over time


Individual career development

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How to avoid big career mistakes while getting ahead?

After interviewing more than 2000 executives, E.D. Betaf has identified the following career mistakes-which would come in the way of someone who wants to get ahead.

Having no plan: Conflict is an inescapable path of organisational life. So if you are in conflict with someone who could derail your career-think twice

before getting into the soup. Instead work out the details of a plan that would help you move closer to those who matter in your workspot.

Lacking expectations: People who don’t understand what their employer would expect them to deliver are bound to miss the bus. Always better to read your job description, identify important tasks to be carried out, seek

clarifications from your boss and deliver things in tune with your boss’s instructions.

Being a loner: The golden rule of work is relationships, relationships and relationships. Friendly relationships help you move closer to your colleagues, make you an important member of a team and build long- lasting bonds with people in other departments as well. It’s far too risky to be a loner and expect your work to speak for itself. Having allies who speak well of your has an added benefit in that it increases your visibility to top management.


Cont…

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Waffling: Business respects those who are willing to take tough decisions and deliver things-right or wrong. People who continually waffle decisions, however, stand out for the wrong reasons.

Focusing too Narrowly: Inability to develop and adapt is one of the important reasons for career failures at many levels. By making sure you develop a variety of widely applicable skills, you can better market yourself to your current employer or, if need be, to a new one.

Covering up: When you commit a blunder the best thing to do is to own up to it and fix it as soon as possible. Handle it right, and you may even come out ahead of the game.


Source: D.B. Hogarthy, “6 Big career mistakes – and How to avoid them”, Reader’s Digest: Wim@Work, Mumbai, 2001.

How to avoid big career mistakes while getting ahead?

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Career self assessment instrument


Name ..................................................................................... A ge ....................................... ..Department .............................

Part A Values and Experiences

1. Describe the roles in your life that are important to you (work life, fam ily life, relig ious life,community life etc.). Explain why these roles are important to you. Indicate how these rolesimpact your total life satisfaction. Assign a per cent to each role (0 to 100 per cent) so that thetotal adds upto 100 per cent.

2. Describe your educational background, including the degrees earned, academic strengthsand weaknesses, extra cu rricular activities etc.

D e gr ee s /D ip lom a s A ca dem ic S treng th s A c a de m ic Extra cu rricularW e a k n e s s e s A ct iv it ies

1 1 1 12 2 2 23 3 3 3

3. List any jobs you held and your experience in each position

O ccupa tion Job D egree o f W ha t I L inked What I W hy Ispe c ia l is a t ion D is l i ked L e f t

1.2.3.4.5.

4. Describe any skills (rank 1 to 5 (lowest to highest) that you possess

a. Communication 1 2 3 4 5

b. Leadersh ip 1 2 3 4 5

c . Interpersonal 1 2 3 4 5

d. Team building 1 2 3 4 5

e. C reativity 1 2 3 4 5

f . Technica l 1 2 3 4 5

(T ick the most appropriate one)5. Sum marise any recognition/awards tha t you have received in re lation to you r education,

work experience, skills or extra curricular activities.Pa rt B . Ca ree r G oals , W ork A t ti tudes and Pre fe rences1. The most important needs I want to satisfy in my career are

abc

2. These needs can be fulfilled in the follow ing:A reas Skills /Assistance neededa: a:b: b:

C o n td . . .

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c : c :3. How important are these values to you in your w ork (I most important : 10 least important)

Values R ank

1. Independence or autonomy -2. F inancial rew ards -3. Sense of achievement -4. Helping others -5. Creating something -6. Job security -7. Good w orking conditions -8. Friendships at w ork -9. Variety of tasks -10. Equality and fairness -

4. W hatever job I handle, I do not wish to compromise on the following1: 4:2: 5:3: 6:

5. W hat internal and external constraints m ight you encounter along the w ay tow ard achievementof your career goals?

6. List the specific jobs that m ight be in line with the above requirementsabc

7. F inally, rate you rself on each of the fo llow ing personal qualities or w ork charac teris tics .Write one response for each characteristic (using the follow ing scale: 1. very low, 2. low,3. average, 4. high, 5. very high)

a. Emotional maturity f . D ependability in completing workb. Initiative/Independence g. F lexibility and open m indednessc . Punctuality h. Perseverance/w illingness to workd. Ability to handle conflict I. Ability to set and achieve goalse. Ability to plan, organise

and determ ine w ork priorities

Career self assessment instrument

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Organisational career development: organisations could help promote

individual careers through a series of well planned moves. These include:


Organisational career development

1 Self assessment tools such as holding a career planning workshop, circulation of a career work book in advance etc.

2. Individual counselling

3. Information services

job posting system

skills inventory

career ladders and career paths

career resource centre

Career Development

Cont…

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4. Employee assessment programmes

Assessment centres

Psychological tests

Promotability forecasts

Succession planning

5. Employee developmental programmes

6. Career programmes for special groups


Career Development

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Career Development Strategies Of Indian Companies

Career development strategies followed by three Indian companiesAt the organisation level, let us examine the career development strategies adopted by three leading companies in India.

Ernst & Young (India)

The global consulting firm uses the same career development methodology in India that it uses elsewhere. Primarily, it seeks to align individual aspirations with organisational, business and functional goals, using the formal assessment system to check for skill gaps and career potential. While designing training tools, things that are given serious attention are past performance, future potential, the individual skill sets and competencies of each manager, and the need of the company. However, the firm often takes the assistance of professional trainers brought in from E&Y offices worldwide, or relevant institutions to design specific training programmes for different categories and levels of managers.

Cont…

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Hyundai Motor (India)

Most executives working for this South Korean car-maker, which started operations in India relatively recently, are middle-level recruits from different industries who have been chosen on the basis of their track record—a factor whose influence pervades the company’s career development system. The company aims to convert these managers into ‘achievers’ for Hyundai, with attributes like mental toughness, professional competence, and an ambition to advance. The HR department devises interventions keeping these goals in mind. The HR functionaries are expected to look at the development process holistically. The company also conducts a three-day process lab where the system is discussed using case studies.

Seagram (India)

The Canadian liquor major has a career development system that hinges on speedy induction. Among the inputs given during the induction programme, fitting in with the organisational culture is critical. The aim is to enable the new entrant to hit the ground running in terms of performance. The programmes also includes sessions on the history of the organisation, product portfolio, and operations. The programme includes visits to markets and bottling units and sessions with each functional head.


Career development strategies followed by three Indian companies

Career Management

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Career management includes both organisational actions and individual efforts aimed at setting career goals, formulating and implementing strategies and monitoring the results.

The career management model


Individual C areerP lann ing

Assess needsAnalyse career opportunitiesSet career goalsDevelop action plans

O rganisat iona l C aree rP lann ing

Assess human resourcerequirementsCareer paths for each personIn te g ra te c a re e r go a ls a n dorganisational needsInitiate career development efforts

C a re e rD ev e lopm e n t

How individuals can reach the top?How organisations can help?Self-assessment toolsIndividual counsellingInformation servicesAssessment programmesDevelopment programmesProgrammes for special groups

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Advantages And Limitations Of Career Planning

Career planning offers significant benefits to both the individual and the

organisation. The employee has advance knowledge of available career

opportunities. He or she can set appropriate career goals and plan to

achieve them over a period of time. Organisations, too, can separate the

stars from the mediocre and reward the efforts of those who are hard

working and talented. This would, in turn, improve employer-employee

relations. On the negative side, for small scale units, career planning may

prove to be a difficult and costly exercise. Sometimes, local laws, union

pressures could upset career planning efforts. Not every company would

be able to resolve all career related issues successfully.

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Effective Career Planning

Effective career planning depends on a number of factors such as

Effective career planning Ensuring top management support

Setting appropriate corporate goals for human resources

Offering rewards for good performance

Placing employees depending on their talents, career aspirations etc

Laying down suitable career paths for all employees

Monitoring continuously to find where the organisation stands

Giving publicity to career related issues and actions

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Succession Planning

The basic purpose of succession planning is to identify and develop people to

replace current job holders in key positions. Through succession planning

organisations ensure a steady flow of internal talent to fill important

vacancies. Succession planning encourages “hiring from within” and creates

a healthy environment where employees have careers and not merely jobs. It

should be noted here that career planning (which covers executives at all

levels), by its very nature, includes succession planning (which covers key

positions at higher levels)

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Replacement Chart

Department : Finance Date:Prepared By :

Senior Equity Analyst

Raja Ram (59)

A1 Rajat Gupta (44)B 1 Shyam Lal (38)

Bond Specialist

Nirmala (31)

A 1 Balraj S ingh (26)B 1 Neelam (28)

Ch

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Replacement Summary for ‘Senior Equity Analyst’

Job holder : Raja Ram A ge : 59Opening : In 3 Years Reason : RetirementSalary Grade : 25,000-35,000 Experience : 12 Years

Candidate 1Name : Rajat Age : 44 YearsDesignation : Equity Analyst Experience : 6 YearsPerformance : Outstanding Reason : ‘Star ’ in the dept.Grade : 18,000-25,000 Promot- : Ready now for

ability promotionCandidate 2Name : Shyam Lal Age : 38 YearsDesignation : Equity Analyst Experience : 3 YearsPerformance : Outstanding Reason : N eeds more

experienceGrade : 13,000-18,000 Promot- : Can wait for

ability 2 Years

Explanations:A . Ready for promotion 1. Outstanding performanceB. Needs more experience 2. Acceptable performanceC. Not suitable for job 3. Poor performance



Raja Ram (59)


Bond Specialist

Nirmala (31)


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ability 2 Years




Raja Ram (59)


Bond Specialist

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ability 2 Years




Raja Ram (59)


Bond Specialist

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ability 2 Years




Raja Ram (59)


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Raja Ram (59)


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Raja Ram (59)


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Raja Ram (59)


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Raja Ram (59)


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Raja Ram (59)


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Raja Ram (59)


Bond Specialist

Nirmala (31)


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Raja Ram (59)


Bond Specialist

Nirmala (31)


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Raja Ram (59)


Bond Specialist

Nirmala (31)


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Raja Ram (59)


Bond Specialist

Nirmala (31)


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ability 2 Years




Raja Ram (59)


Bond Specialist

Nirmala (31)


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A replacement chart is a visual representation of who will replace whom if

there is a job opening

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Succession Management

Succession management focuses attention on creating and stocking pools of candidates with high leadership potential. It assures that key people are not just identified but also nurtured and developed into future leadership roles

Steps in succession management Identifying the shortage of leadership skills and defining the requirements

Identifying potential successors for critical positions

Coaching and grooming the 'star performers'

The interesting case of BAJAJ AUTO

Arm your successor

Begin at the edges

Start succession early

Prepare the organisation.

Chapter 11

Technology

career planning

succession

career goals

move closer

readers digest

flying start

fast start

persons life