Program objective
Strengthen business continuity through evidence-based succession planning. Participants identify critical roles, assess readiness and development needs, and define practical actions that build leadership capacity and reduce succession risk.
Who this suits
HR and talent professionals, senior managers and leaders responsible for succession or critical-role continuity.
Professional objectives
- Identify business-critical roles and evidence-based succession requirements.
- Assess readiness and development needs through fair, structured reviews.
- Build succession actions that strengthen continuity and leadership capacity.
Key learning outcomes
- Create a critical-role register and continuity-risk assessment.
- Develop a success profile with observable assessment criteria.
- Complete a talent-review case and document the evidence behind the assessment.
- Build a succession slate and identify the most material coverage gaps.
- Produce an individual development plan with milestones and accountable sponsorship.
- Create a succession-governance calendar and progress scorecard.
Module map
- 1.Critical roles and continuity risk
- 2.Success profiles and future capability
- 3.Talent assessment and calibration
- 4.Succession slates and readiness
- 5.Development and experience building
- 6.Governance and progress measurement
Modules in detail
1
Critical roles and continuity risk
Theory & concepts
Identify roles where a vacancy or capability loss would materially affect the business. Examine role scarcity, institutional knowledge and strategic importance, and distinguish immediate cover from longer-term succession needs. Assess strategic importance, vacancy impact and scarcity for each role. Distinguish critical-role succession from broad talent development and immediate operational cover.
Professional application
Prioritize roles using the business consequence of a vacancy and the time needed to prepare a successor. Distinguish emergency cover from sustained readiness.
Hands-on exercise & output
Create a critical-role register and continuity-risk assessment.
2
Success profiles and future capability
Theory & concepts
Define the experience, behaviors and capabilities needed for future performance. Challenge assumptions based solely on the current role holder, and connect success profiles to strategic direction and changes in the operating model. Define future capability using role outcomes, leadership behaviors and essential experiences. Avoid simply cloning the current role holder or treating tenure as evidence of readiness.
Professional application
Define the experiences and behaviors required for future success. Review whether changing strategy or technology alters the profile instead of copying historic requirements.
Hands-on exercise & output
Develop a success profile with observable assessment criteria.
3
Talent assessment and calibration
Theory & concepts
Distinguish performance, potential, aspiration and readiness. Use multiple evidence sources and structured calibration, and address bias, confidentiality and the limitations of labels such as a nine-box rating. Use performance history, behavior examples, aspiration and development evidence in talent reviews. Challenge bias and unsupported labels through a structured calibration discussion.
Professional application
Separate evidence of current performance from evidence of future readiness. Use calibration to challenge assumptions and document both confidence and gaps in the assessment.
Hands-on exercise & output
Complete a talent-review case and document the evidence behind the assessment.
4
Succession slates and readiness
Theory & concepts
Develop credible successor options with explicit readiness criteria and risk assumptions. Identify gaps, avoid dependency on a single candidate and consider internal mobility, external recruitment and emergency coverage where appropriate. Identify ready-now, near-term and longer-term succession options using explicit criteria. Examine single-candidate dependency, retention risk and external-market alternatives.
Professional application
Assess the strength of the full succession slate, including concentration and mobility constraints. Identify where external hiring or additional development options are needed.
Hands-on exercise & output
Build a succession slate and identify the most material coverage gaps.
5
Development and experience building
Theory & concepts
Translate readiness gaps into stretch assignments, mentoring, coaching and targeted learning. Assign accountable sponsors and milestones, and assess growth through demonstrated capability rather than completion of development activities alone. Link each readiness gap to a specific assignment, coach, mentor or learning intervention. Define the evidence that demonstrates progress beyond attendance or time spent.
Professional application
Design assignments that directly address the readiness gap. Agree the sponsor, support, milestone and observable evidence required to demonstrate progress.
Hands-on exercise & output
Produce an individual development plan with milestones and accountable sponsorship.
6
Governance and progress measurement
Theory & concepts
Define ownership, review frequency and appropriate communication. Monitor succession coverage, readiness movement and critical-role risk, and integrate updates into workforce planning and leadership discussions. Agree review frequency, access to sensitive information and communication principles. Monitor coverage, readiness movement and critical-role risk as business requirements change.
Professional application
Establish fair communication and access principles for sensitive talent information. Review readiness against current evidence and refresh succession priorities as the business changes.
Hands-on exercise & output
Create a succession-governance calendar and progress scorecard.
Integrated assignment
Develop a critical-role succession review and development plan with evidence of readiness, gaps, actions and review responsibilities.
Delivery & methodology
Format
Part-time professional training
Attendance
Face-to-face · Live online
Location
Dubai / UAE for face-to-face cohorts; online attendance available
Timing
Session hours, timetable, venue and cohort availability are confirmed in joining instructions.
- Pre-course needs and learning-goals assessment
- Facilitated theory and professional concepts
- Guided demonstrations, case analysis and hands-on exercises
- Application to workplace decisions, with discussion and feedback
- Post-course learning review and a personal application plan
Assessment & application
Before
Identify your role, experience, priority objectives and a workplace task you want to improve. Record a baseline confidence rating with an example of current capability.
During
Review module exercises for accurate use of the method, evidence supporting decisions, relevance to the case and clarity of the completed output. Use facilitator and peer feedback to refine the work.
After
Compare the completed assignment with your initial objectives. Explain the decisions made, identify remaining gaps and record the next practical steps.
Workplace transfer
Create a personal 30-day application plan with a defined action, target date, required support and an observable success measure. This is a participant follow-through plan; ongoing coaching is scoped separately.
Frequently asked questions
How does the program build critical-role readiness?
It identifies the roles that matter most, assesses talent using evidence, runs calibration and succession mapping, and links readiness gaps to meaningful experiences and accountable sponsorship.
How is fairness maintained?
Evidence-based assessment, calibration and confidentiality are built into the framework.
Are the dates confirmed?
Dates, delivery format and places are confirmed by TIH before any booking is finalized. Use the enquiry option to check the next available cohort.
