Use of Succession Planning to Prepare Future Leaders in Selected Federal Agencies at Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD

摘要

The importance of succession planning is well known in industry and in the armed forces. It provides a venue for an orderly transition of command and control responsibilities to a designated person who is preselected and groomed to take on higher responsibilities with minimal to no disruption of ongoing operations in case the incumbent leaves his/her position. Aberdeen Proving Ground (APG) in Maryland is a very large army installation with 43 major organizations and 28 suborganizations as tenants. Most of these organizations manage a significant amount of acquisition-related projects. Because of the diversity of their missions and functions, as well as the projected shortage of acquisition-related funding in future years, it is essential for these organizations to have a well developed and executed succession plan for a smooth transition of leadership. This study was conducted to determine whether selected federal agencies at APG have succession plans in place to identify and prepare their talented employees for future senior-level positions. Data for the study were obtained through both written surveys and interviews of key personnel of select federal agencies at APG between Feb. 16 and March 14, 2011. A key finding from the survey was that none of the participating agencies had any type of formal succession plan in place for several reasons. Most of them, however, recognized the importance of succession planning and were following informal processes to prepare their key personnel for senior level positions in their organizations.