Succession Planning Toolkit

  We often spend a lot of time and energy recruiting and inducting people into vacant governance and leadership roles in our organisations such as Chair and Chief Officer.

We usually spend much less time thinking about when people might move on, and what this means for succession planning so that the organisation’s work continues to run smoothly. This guide considers:

• what is succession planning?
• establishing clear term limits for trustees
• having a governance diary and plan
• board composition and diversity
• conducting a board skills audit
• planning for when key staff leave

  How to use this guide

• The guide is intended as a conversation-starter, so please use it in any way that is meaningful for your organisation, such as:
• to start a review of your current succession planning process
• to identify gaps in skills, experience and diversity on the board
• to agree clear actions about how a transfer of knowledge will be undertaken