Many years ago, a tutor conducting a management studies class asked the group what the duty of a manager was.
Each student gave an answer with which the tutor agreed and wrote on the board.
After erasing the answers, he said: “The duty of a manager is to teach someone else his job,” with the reason that if the manager fell ill or died, the business would still continue. He further explained that such is called “succession planning”.
Last Friday in a section of the print media, three business entities announced their intention to apply to the Chief Immigration Officer for work permits for non-nationals to fill positions.
• The Bank of Nova Scotia cannot find a Barbadian to fill the position of branch manager.
• Hilton Resort cannot find a Barbadian to fill the position of general manager.
• EY Management Ltd cannot find a Barbadian to fill one position of assurance manager and another of senior.
One definition of succession planning says it is “the identification of job vacancies that can be expected to occur through retirement or attrition, and the strategic consideration of where and how internal candidates might fill those vacancies”.
The website Simplicity HR states that succession planning is an essential part of doing business.
Based on the foregoing, a number of questions come to mind:
• Is succession planning still considered a core function within performance management?
• What level of priority is placed on training as part of succession planning across the business community?
• What factors are responsible for the number of unfilled vacancies?
• Are Barbadians being adequately educated and trained for the job market?
– MICHAEL RAY
