5 Common Mistakes in Succession Planning and How to Avoid Them

January 29, 2025 – Succession planning is more than a strategy—it’s the key to securing a company’s future. Yet even well-meaning organizations, brimming with potential, often misjudge how to execute this crucial process effectively, according to a recently released report from SGA Talent. Below, the executive search firm breaks down five frequent missteps in the succession planning process and, more importantly, how to dodge them.
1. Treating Succession Planning as a Fire Drill.
Many companies fall into the trap of reactive succession planning, according to the SGA Talent report. “They only start looking for replacements when a key leader resigns or retires, leading to frantic, last-minute scrambles,” the study explains. “This approach narrows the talent pool and risks leadership gaps.”
How to Avoid It: Shift from reactive to proactive. The SGA Talent report notes to make the succession planning process an integral, ongoing part of your organizational strategy. “Regularly assess which roles are pivotal and identify potential successors before there’s any sign of departure,” the search firm said. “This consistent focus ensures that future leaders are primed and ready, not thrown in unprepared.”
2. Overlooking the Full Spectrum of Critical Roles.
Succession planning often zeroes in on senior executives, leaving out other essential positions that keep operations afloat. “Ignoring these mid-level or specialized roles can lead to a cascade of disruption when turnover occurs,” SGA Talent said.
How to Dodge This Pitfall: Conduct an all-encompassing review of your company’s structure to spotlight roles that, if left vacant, would hinder performance. “Beyond C-suite positions, think about your technical experts, project leads, department heads, and others,” the SGA Talent report said. “Prioritizing these ensures that continuity isn’t limited to the top echelon but extends throughout the entire organization.”
3. Failing to Bridge the Readiness Gap.
The SGA Talent report also explains that identifying potential leaders is crucial, but many companies stop there. “They assume that when the time comes, successors will instinctively rise to the occasion,” the study said. “This assumption is risky; without targeted development, even promising candidates can flounder.”
Prevent This by: Designing comprehensive, individualized development plans. The SGA Talent report notes that these plans should weave together formal training, real-world leadership tasks, and mentorship programs. “Job shadowing can also be transformative, offering potential leaders a firsthand glimpse into the challenges they will face,” it said. “This preparatory stage transforms potential into readiness.”
4. Neglecting Diversity and Inclusion.
“A narrow vision of leadership pipelines leads to homogenous teams, which can stifle innovation and limit a company’s ability to adapt,” the SGA Talent report said. “Without deliberate efforts, many organizations overlook the wealth of talent in diverse candidate pools, missing opportunities to build teams with a wider range of experiences and ideas.”
Related: CHRO’s Impact on CEO Succession Planning
How to Ensure Inclusivity: The study says to weave diversity and inclusion into the very fabric of your succession strategy. “Challenge biases by collaborating with HR and leadership to broaden the criteria for selection,” the report said. “Look beyond traditional profiles and recognize the unique strengths that individuals from varied backgrounds bring to the table. This broadens your leadership horizon and infuses fresh perspectives into the decision-making process.”
5. Keeping Plans Under Wraps.
Recruiters say that transparency can make or break employee trust. Succession plans that are kept under lock and key foster suspicion, erode morale, and can make even the most loyal employees feel disconnected from future opportunities.
Creating an Impactful Succession Plan
CEO succession is a critical process for companies, ensuring that they have the right leadership in place to drive success and growth. The process refers to the strategic process of identifying and developing individuals within an organization to take over key leadership positions when they become vacant.
Avoid This by: “Communicating openly about the process and pathways for career progression,” the SGA Talent report said. “While it’s not necessary to divulge every detail, employees should know that a structured plan is in place and that they, too, can be a part of it. Clear, honest dialogue cultivates trust, engagement, and motivation across your workforce.”
Steering clear of these missteps can make all the difference between a seamless leadership transition and one riddled with chaos. Proactivity, comprehensive role evaluation, robust development plans, diversity, and transparent communication form the backbone of effective succession planning.
SGA Talent is a 100 percent women-owned company that utilizes a research-first strategy to secure senior hires in the professional services, hospitality, financial services, insurance, healthcare/pharmaceutical, manufacturing, utilities, and aerospace and defense industries. Some of SGA’s clients include McKinsey & Company, Northrop Grumman, PayPal, New York Life, Compass Group, and a Big Four consulting firm.
SGA Talent offers “recruiting on-demand express” and “research on-demand express” solutions to provide hiring managers, human resources professionals, and talent acquisition leaders with additional options beyond traditional recruiting services. SGA Talent’s recruiting on-demand express delivers a high-quality targeted talent candidate pipeline in three days. This service utilizes SGA Talent’s propriety recruitment methodology and offers the answer to time-constraint recruiting activities. “This service is often used when an internal recruiting team is overextended and needs results quickly,” the firm said. “It is designed for mid-level to junior-level candidates; it is not designed for executive search level candidates.”
Related: Seven Steps to Successful CEO Succession
Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief and Dale M. Zupsansky, Executive Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media