Difference Between Career Planning and Succession Planning

Introduction

Planning is crucial in human life, involving anticipating future actions. At the personal level, career planning is prevalent, involving setting goals and deadlines for achievement. It assesses an individual's skills, abilities, and interests to establish long-term objectives.

At the organizational level, ensuring a company's continuous success requires having capable employees ready to fill key roles and lead the organization. This is achieved through effective succession planning, which evaluates essential roles within the organization and identifies the type of person needed to fulfill those positions.

Definition of Career Planning

Career Planning is a structured process in which an individual establishes career goals and develops strategies to attain them. It helps individuals explore, select, and pursue life goals to find satisfaction in their careers.

Career Planning is the foundational stage of the career management process. It involves identifying the desired career path and devising the necessary steps to achieve it. It also involves assessing one's interests and abilities, exploring alternative career options, setting career objectives, and planning development activities.

When an organization engages in planning, it's referred to as organizational career planning. This process entails a systematic progression of job roles orchestrated by the company to foster the growth and development of its employees.

Definition of Succession Planning

Succession Planning is an ongoing process aimed at identifying and nurturing potential leaders to fill key positions and replace outgoing ones within an organization, ensuring its seamless operation. It's a strategic approach outlining the steps necessary to achieve the organization's mission and objectives. The goal is to identify potential successors from both internal and external sources.

In this process, employees are assessed and trained to step into significant leadership roles when the organization no longer employs incumbents due to reasons such as resignation, retirement, promotion, transfer, etc.

Succession Planning empowers managers and executives to evaluate and cultivate a pool of talented employees who possess the capability and willingness to fill vacant positions within the organization.

Key Differences Between Career Planning and Succession Planning

1. Career planning is the process by which an employee selects the goals for their professional life and seeks ways to achieve them. Conversely, succession planning involves identifying and nurturing employees who can step into critical positions within the organization when they become available.
2. While career planning falls under the umbrella of career management, succession planning is a component of succession management.
3. Career planning involves an individual's process of planning for their own career path. In contrast, succession planning is an organizational strategy aimed at ensuring continuity by replacing key incumbents with the best-suited employees for those positions.
4. In career planning, an individual may hold multiple positions throughout their professional life. Conversely, in succession planning, different individuals may hold the same position at different times within an organization.
5. Career planning is beneficial for achieving success in one's career. Conversely, succession planning ensures continuity in leadership for key roles within the organization.

Difference Between Career Planning and Succession Planning

Conclusion

Career planning benefits the individual, while succession planning benefits the entire organization. Both are proactive and future-focused.