How apprenticeships can help you with succession planning
Posted on: 21 August, 2024
Here’s how apprenticeships can help HR teams implement their succession plans and prepare for the departure of key employees.
No one works at one job forever. While some people may spend their entire career employed by one business, the average person is estimated to have as many as 12 jobs during their lives, and even for the most loyal employees, there comes a time to move on or retire.
This can be a dilemma for businesses. No matter their seniority or role, replacing an employee can be an expensive, time-consuming process. It’s also difficult to predict when employees leave, and the pressure to bring in new talent in short notice can lead to bad hires and, potentially, further spend.
The problem has only been exasperated by the fact that the workforce is aging. Around a third of all workers are now aged 50 or over, meaning a high percentage of skilled and experienced professionals are approaching retirement. This is particularly true for the construction industry, where the number of employees over the age of 60 is increasing more than any other age group, and 41% of the workforce will have retired by 2031.
These factors make replacing employees a challenge for HR teams and have given rise to the philosophy of succession planning. But what exactly is it, and how does it work?
What is succession planning?
Succession planning is a proactive recruitment practice where new talent that can fill positions within a business are actively identified. These individuals are then prepped to assume the roles in the future, so that when there is a departure, they can step in and transition seamlessly, without a disruption to business activities.
How does succession planning work?
There are five steps to the typical succession planning process:
- Identify critical and/or vulnerable roles that need planning
- Establish requirements for each role
- Begin the recruiting process
- Identify a successor
- Document the transition
What are the benefits of succession planning?
Formally identifying and preparing replacements for roles can offer an array of benefits, both for employers and employees.
Benefits for employers
- Reduced recruitment costs: Instead of spending money searching for a replacement, succession planning can identify internal candidates for a role.
- Improved employee loyalty: Progression, development and opportunities matter to today’s workforce, and providing this through succession planning can improve loyalty among employees.
- Identify key talent and potential leaders: Succession planning can identify employees with exceptional talent, potential and skills, and put them forward for senior roles and management positions where they will be well suited.
- Increases resilience in uncertain times: Events like COVID-19 illustrate the need for businesses to be able to adapt, which succession planning aids by ensuring certain competencies and skills are maintained within the workforce.
Benefits for employees
- Improved engagement and recognition: If companies want to hold onto their employees, they need to be sure they’re offering them the ability to develop their skills and progress in their careers, which succession planning facilitates.
- Boost morale and trust in management: Giving employees a clear idea of how they can progress and what roles will become available to them can improve both morale and also trust in senior management.
- Optimises performance and productivity: Companies that know what areas their employees will eventually fill can focus both their training and their workload on specific competencies, ensuring maximum productivity.
- Creates opportunities for seasoned talent: As outlined above, offering the opportunity to develop and progress is key to employee retention. This is of particular importance to seasoned talent and gifted employees, who will feel more inclined to stick around if they’re provided with opportunities.
Succession planning isn’t without its challenges
A succession planning approach is an excellent way to protect your organisation’s repertoire of skills and support its bench strength, but implementing it isn’t without its challenges. HR teams need to consider several factors, such as the morale of employees involved. This works from both perspectives – if the employee leaving isn’t entirely happy about the reason they’re leaving, keeping them engaged so that the handover of responsibilities is seamless can be challenging. Similarly, caution should be taken making long-term promises to employees about potential progression, when circumstances can potentially change and positions become unavailable or unsuitable to them.
Perhaps one of the biggest challenges in the construction industry is having access to talent in the first place. The shortage of skills – particularly in areas like sustainability – is well-documented, along with the challenge the sector has in building awareness and attracting talent. This is where apprenticeships can help.
Higher and degree apprenticeships
Higher and degree apprenticeships have emerged as an alternative to the traditional university route. They provide an avenue for people to gain the qualifications they need while, simultaneously, developing practical skills and hands-on experience in the workplace. This means they can get up to speed quickly by having the opportunity to put their learnings into practice, while obtaining the recognised qualifications that are necessary for them to practice.
For businesses, apprenticeships are a cost-effective way to develop new talent and improve diversity. It helps to create loyal employees – something that is extremely valuable in today’s workforce – and diversify an organisation’s talent pool. Apprenticeships are also open to learners of any age, meaning they’re a great way of upskilling existing members of staff.
From the perspective of employees, apprenticeships are an attractive proposition, giving them the opportunity to earn whilst they learn and avoid the debts usually associated with higher education study. There’s also a greater amount of flexibility in the apprenticeship model, particularly with online study.
Learn more: Working, earning and studying simultaneously through an apprenticeship
How apprenticeships can support succession planning
Apprenticeships can work alongside a succession planning strategy to ensure long-term business continuity and improve retention. This is particularly important in construction, where shortages in green skills and digital proficiencies are being exasperated by an aging workforce.
Apprentices can be enrolled into specific courses that align with the organisation’s long-term needs and wants for specific skills and competencies. For instance, an apprenticeship in Building Control can keep employees up to date with the Building Safety Act – crucial legislation all professionals need to align with if they want to be able to practice in the industry. On the other hand, a sustainability-focused programme can help employers prepare for emerging business priorities and the need for long-term planning.
Another beneficial aspect of apprenticeships is the support available to both apprentices and the organisation itself. At UCEM, Apprenticeship Outcome Officers (AOO) act as the main point of contact during an apprenticeship. They provide support by staging regular progress reviews and check-ins with both the apprentice and their line manager to ensure both their academic and their office-based development is in line with the goals of both the individual and the organisation itself.
What’s more, UCEM’s Business Development Team are able to guide organisations throughout the process, and help them identify which programmes work best for their businesses long-term needs.
Learn more: 8 reasons you should launch an apprenticeship scheme with UCEM
If you’d like to learn more about how apprenticeships can help your business, visit our Apprenticeship Programmes page.
Alternatively you can contact UCEM’s Business Development team at businessdevelopment@ucem.ac.uk
