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DDI just released its HR Insights Report 2025—a global study of 2,185 HR professionals and 10,796 leaders. The 19-page report includes seven sections: HR’s evolving strategic role, the impact of assessments, succession planning, retention, Gen Z trends, development measurement, and AI leadership readiness. One section that stood out is succession planning. While many CHROs rank internal talent development as their top priority and 75% prioritize internal promotion, only 20% of HR leaders have successors ready for critical roles—and just 49% of key roles could be filled internally today. In my experience, these gaps often stem from two challenges: 1) lack of accountability for follow-through, where development plans are created but not executed, and 2) development that’s too broad, defaulting to low-impact activities rather than targeting the most critical skills or experiences. To identify higher-impact development actions for successors, ask: Which actions accelerate readiness for multiple roles? (e.g., experiences that benefit more than one succession path). Which build multiple capabilities at once (e.g., leading a cross-functional initiative that develops strategic thinking, influence, and change leadership)? Which expose successors to the complexity of the targeted role (e.g., managing across boundaries)? Can these activities be built into the successor’s current responsibilities/role? If not, are there short-term assignments that provide similar stretch? Accountability and prioritization are what drive progress in accelerating successor readiness.
