“In playing ball, and in life, a person occasionally gets the opportunity to do something great. When that time comes, only two things matter: being prepared to seize the moment and having the courage to take your best swing.” – Hank Aaron “Batter up!” Baseball is in full swing and so is succession planning. Are you building your bench strength?  If not, START.  Easy to say, but where do you begin? One key element is learning and development for your current team. Employees STAY when they feel an organization is invested and investing in them. LinkedIn’s 2018 Workforce Learning Report  LinkedIn’s 2018 Workforce Learning Report found that 93% of respondents would remain at a company longer if it invested in their career. LinkedIn Learning’s 2021 Workplace Learning Report  LinkedIn Learning’s 2021 Workplace Learning Report confirms that this trend still holds true. Gen Z employees especially place a high value on learning in the workplace, and the associated career ...

Last week I wrote an article titled “Six Questions that Demand an Answer.”  Sharing the article with a few trusted advisers, I received one consistent bit of feedback best summarized by this response. “Frank, I agree these are questions we must ask ourselves; they caused me to pause and ponder.  I used them as an exercise with my team to think about our overall strategy.  I believe taking the time to think about our business from an outside perspective to be justified and worthwhile.   Sometimes it’s hard to do this subjectively.  I would like to see more questions just like these.” The following is my first round of questions.  I have put them into categories to make them easier to digest.  Some will apply to your position, some will not.  I suggest spending a moment visiting these topics with members of your own team. A note:  The readers of this blog come from a variety of backgrounds, hold a diverse collection of positio...