Tips for succession planning

 

Effective succession planning is essential for ensuring a steady supply of capable leaders at CFA.

 

Fostering an environment that motivates volunteers to stay and grow is a priority. This approach is crucial not only for the personal and professional development of our volunteers, but also for meeting future demands in our brigades.

• Having a good understanding of your active brigade membership is vital to identify potential leaders and ensure all your brigade roles are filled. Regular brigade membership reviews are encouraged so that any volunteers who may be disengaging are contacted promptly and supported to participate in roles that align with both the brigade's needs and their circumstances.

• Ensure role responsibilities are clearly defined and understood by all your brigade volunteers. When roles are clearly defined, volunteers should then be encouraged to develop their skills and experience, preparing them for future leadership roles. This is also an opportunity to share the workload in your brigade, promoting a balanced distribution of tasks and responsibilities across your team.

• Brigades are required to have an appropriate mix of technical skills and experience for the operational activities they are likely to undertake. Assess if your brigade’s active volunteers have the skills required to meet your risk profile, alongside a review of leadership and management skill sets. This will support the brigade to target and tailor individual member’s training needs and develop their leadership potential.

• Brigade leadership teams should be transparent about planning for elections. Open and honest discussions should be conducted well before elections, because there should be no secrets about who is intending to nominate. This is the time brigade leaders should be actively seeking and supporting future leaders to nominate for elected positions.

• Make sure your volunteers are well informed about the brigade roles and responsibilities before elections. This helps them understand the skills and experience needed if they are considering nominating for a position.

• When preparing for elections, brigades can use succession planning templates for mapping the volunteers ready and willing to step into a role from one election term to the next. This will also help brigades to understand where their role gaps will be.

• Encourage people of all ages and experience levels to do professional development and leadership courses. This will create a space where everyone’s skills and perspectives help people to grow and succeed.

For more information and resources to support succession planning in your brigade, check out the Succession Planning Framework.

 

Submitted by	News and Media