What Happens If Your Best People Leave Tomorrow?
Your VP of Sales gives notice. Your engineering lead gets poached. Your operations manager has a family emergency and needs to step back. Do you have someone ready to step up? Or do you promote whoever’s available and hope for the best?
Most small businesses discover succession planning gaps when it’s too late:
- Key employee leaves, taking critical knowledge and relationships
- You promote someone who isn’t ready, and they struggle
- You hire externally in a panic and pay 20-30% more than planned
- Projects stall because no one knows how to do what that person did
- Your team loses confidence because leadership appears unprepared
Succession planning isn’t just for Fortune 500 companies. Any business with 15+ employees has key person risk. Our Talent Reviews & Succession Planning service gives you visibility into your talent bench and a plan for continuity.
WHAT YOU’LL RECEIVE
1. Talent Assessment Framework
- 9-Box Grid template (performance vs. potential matrix)
- Assessment criteria guide (what “high performance” and “high potential” actually mean)
- Talent segmentation model (Stars, Solid Performers, Growth Needed, etc.)
- Manager calibration guide (how to ensure consistent ratings across team)
- Talent review meeting agenda (how leadership discusses talent collectively)
2. Succession Planning System
- Key position identification worksheet (which roles are critical to business continuity)
- Succession depth analysis (ready now, ready in 1-2 years, ready in 3-5 years)
- Succession planning template (position-by-position backup plans)
- Risk assessment matrix (which positions have zero backup? high risk!)
- Development gap analysis (what skills do successors need to build?)
3. High-Potential Employee Program
- High-potential (HiPo) identification criteria (how to spot future leaders)
- HiPo nomination process (how managers recommend employees)
- HiPo program framework (what special development HiPos receive)
- Retention strategies for HiPos (keeping your best people)
- HiPo communication guide (what to tell them, what not to promise)
4. Individual Development Plans (IDPs)
- IDP template (structured development planning for successors)
- Development activity menu (stretch assignments, training, mentoring, etc.)
- IDP conversation guide (how managers discuss development with employees)
- Progress tracking template (quarterly IDP check-ins)
5. Talent Review Meeting Materials
- Annual talent review agenda (comprehensive talent discussion with leadership)
- Talent review preparation guide (how managers prepare for talent discussions)
- Talent review discussion questions (what to ask about each employee)
- Action planning template (decisions and next steps from talent review)
- Talent review summary template (documenting outcomes and owners)
6. Knowledge Transfer & Continuity
- Key knowledge inventory (what critical knowledge exists only in certain heads?)
- Knowledge transfer template (how to document and share critical information)
- Cross-training plan template (building backup capability)
- Critical relationship mapping (who has key client/vendor relationships?)
7. Communication & Rollout
- Succession planning policy (how your company approaches succession)
- Manager training guide (how to have development conversations)
- Employee FAQ (how development and succession work at your company)
- Talking points for announcing talent development initiatives
All templates customized to your org size and structure
WHAT’S NOT INCLUDED
This is a framework and planning system, not ongoing talent management:
- ❌ Executive coaching or leadership development delivery (we provide frameworks, not coaching)
- ❌ External talent assessment tools (like Hogan, Predictive Index – though we can integrate if you use them)
- ❌ 360-degree feedback administration (available as separate add-on)
- ❌ Psychometric testing or personality assessments
- ❌ Compensation/equity planning for retention (separate from development planning)
- ❌ Executive search or external candidate sourcing
- ❌ Ongoing facilitation of talent reviews (we provide materials, you run meetings)
- ❌ Individual career coaching for employees
This gives you the system. Executing talent reviews, development plans, and succession planning is your ongoing responsibility.
WHAT WE NEED FROM YOU
Complete our intake (30-40 minutes):
Required Information:
- Organization structure:
- Current org chart
- Number of employees by department
- Leadership team composition
- Key positions:
- Which roles are critical to business continuity?
- Where do you have “single points of failure”?
- Recent departures that hurt (tells us about risk)
- Current practices:
- Do you conduct any formal talent reviews now?
- How do you identify high performers?
- Do you have documented development plans?
- Business context:
- Growth plans (will you need to promote from within?)
- Known upcoming retirements or departures
- Areas where you’re struggling to hire (where internal pipeline is critical)
Optional But Helpful:
- Existing performance review data (helps us calibrate talent assessment)
- Recent promotion decisions (what drove them?)
- Known “flight risks” among high performers
PROCESS & TIMELINE
Day 1: Receive intake form via email
Days 1-2: You complete intake + share org chart and key position list
Days 3-5: We customize 9-box framework, succession templates, and development planning materials to your org
Day 5: Deliver draft package for review
Day 6: Review call (45 min) to walk through materials and answer questions
Day 7: Deliver final package with any requested adjustments
Post-delivery: 2-week email support to answer questions during first talent review
Total timeline: 7 business days from intake to delivery + ongoing email support
WHO THIS SERVICE IS FOR
This service is perfect for:
✅ Companies with 15-50 employees starting to need formal succession planning
✅ Startups preparing for next growth phase and need to promote from within
✅ Businesses with recent “oh crap” departures that revealed gaps
✅ Leadership teams worried about key person risk in critical roles
✅ Companies losing high performers because there’s no clear development path
✅ Anyone preparing to conduct first formal talent review with leadership team
You need this if:
- You have positions where only ONE person knows how to do critical work
- Recent departures caused major disruption
- You’re promoting people who aren’t ready because there’s no pipeline
- High performers are leaving because they don’t see growth opportunity
- You’ve never had a structured conversation about “who’s next?”
Not right for you if:
- You have <10 employees (probably premature—focus on hiring well first)
- You’re primarily hiring executives from outside (succession planning less relevant)
- You need executive assessment/coaching (this is planning systems, not coaching)
WHY SUCCESSION PLANNING MATTERS FOR SMALL BUSINESSES
Business Continuity:
When a key person leaves unexpectedly, lack of succession planning costs you:
- 6-9 months to find external replacement (longer for specialized roles)
- 20-30% salary premium to hire externally vs. promote internally
- 3-6 months for new hire to get up to speed
- Lost momentum on critical projects
Talent Retention:
High performers leave when they don’t see a future. Succession planning shows your best people there’s a path forward.
Promotion Success:
Promoting someone who’s been deliberately developed for the role = 70% success rate. Promoting someone because they’re “next in line” with no development = 30% success rate.
Institutional Knowledge:
The knowledge transfer component alone prevents the “oh no, only Sarah knew how to do that” crisis.
Investor Confidence:
If you’re raising capital, investors look for management depth. “What if your CEO gets hit by a bus?” is a real due diligence question.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What’s a 9-box grid and why do I need it?
It’s a talent assessment tool that plots employees on performance (how they’re doing now) vs. potential (how far they could go). It helps you identify Stars, Solid Performers, High Potentials, and who needs support or exit.
How often should we do talent reviews?
Annually minimum, biannually optimal. We’ll provide both annual and mid-year frameworks.
Should we tell employees they’re being discussed in succession planning?
Depends. We provide guidance on what to communicate (you’re being developed for bigger things) vs. what not to promise (you’ll definitely get the VP job).
What if we don’t have internal successors for key roles?
The process identifies the gaps so you can address them (hire external successor, develop people faster, create knowledge transfer urgency, etc.).
How do we identify “high potential” employees?
We provide criteria: learns quickly, seeks growth, demonstrates leadership behaviors, adapts to change, delivers results. Then managers nominate + leadership calibrates.
What development do we offer high potentials?
Stretch assignments, executive exposure, external training, mentoring, special projects—we provide a menu of options you can customize to your budget.
Isn’t succession planning just for executives?
No! Individual contributors in critical technical roles need successors too. If only one person can run your production system, that’s high risk.
How do we handle employees who aren’t succession candidates?
9-box helps you differentiate. Solid Performers who aren’t going higher can still grow skills. Some people need performance improvement. This clarity is valuable.
What if our identified successors leave?
That’s why you assess succession depth. Ideally each key role has 2-3 potential successors at different readiness levels.
Do small companies really need this?
Yes. You’re MORE vulnerable to key person risk than big companies with deep benches. One critical departure can cripple a 25-person company.
LEGAL DISCLAIMER
This service provides talent management frameworks and succession planning tools, not legal advice. While we include guidance on fair, non-discriminatory talent assessment, you are responsible for ensuring your talent management practices comply with employment laws.
Talent reviews and succession planning should be based on objective, job-related criteria. We recommend documenting the business justification for development decisions and maintaining confidentiality of talent review discussions.
This service does not constitute employment advice for specific personnel decisions. Consult legal counsel for questions about discrimination, privacy, or employment law compliance related to talent management.
ADD-ONS AVAILABLE
Manager Training Session (+$499): 2-hour training on conducting talent reviews and development conversations
360-Degree Feedback Setup (+$399): Survey design and process for multi-rater feedback
Talent Review Facilitation (+$799): We’ll facilitate your first annual talent review meeting (virtual)
IDP Template Customization (+$199): Custom development planning for your specific career paths
