New Improved Succession Planner Version 2.0 Now Available

Business Performance Pty Ltd | 07 Feb 2010

Given the current global financial turmoil, many businesses are looking to save money on their system and software purchases. This week, Business Performance P/L made the job of purchasing an economical leadership succession planner easier with the release of Version 2.0 of their popular Succession Planner software.

This software will benefit anyone who needs to manage the pipeline of leadership talent in their organization economically and efficiently. It is well suited to human resource managers and consultants, SME business owners, directors and anyone else with a need to manage and report leadership succession. Business Performance P/L is able to offer Succession Planner at the low end of the cost scale because the software is built upon Microsoft Excel.

The tool’s author, Andy Beaulieu, explained, “Instead of creating the software using a proprietary system, I designed Succession Planner as a natural extension of the Microsoft Office suite. Microsoft Excel is the standard in business spreadsheet applications, so what better base is there on which to build a system that is both simple and familiar to most business users?”

Succession Planner is designed to ease the pain of succession planning with some well thought out features. For example, the tool displays the succession status of incumbents in an informative Organization Chart that is automatically updated with changes. Another useful feature is the C-P Matrix that plots the distribution of staff using the key variables of contribution and potential. Automatically generated reports inform key leaders about any individual and any position in the database, plus a simple scorecard displays some key succession metrics for the organization.

Leslie Allan, Managing Director of Business Performance Pty Ltd, outlined some of the new features in Version 2.0. “In this new version,” he said, “we have expanded the capacity of the Organization Chart and the Position Profile report, added a cell occupants report to the C-P Matrix and altogether made the tool more configurable for users.” Beaulieu added, “Given the broader spans of control common in organizations today, users will find the added capacity on the Organization Chart very helpful. In addition, users can now copy any chart or list to paste as a graphic into Word, PowerPoint or another application.”

The tool is supplied as a Microsoft Excel template and can be used on any Microsoft Windows-based PC with Excel 2002 or later installed. Accompanying the tool are two key resources: a User Guide for those administering the tool, and a Process Guide to assist HR in setting up a strong succession planning process. Both resources are supplied as Adobe Acrobat PDF files, which are readable on almost any computer. The Adobe Acrobat Reader is available as a free download from the Adobe website.

For those wanting to try out the tool before purchase, Business Performance P/L has made available a trial version of the tool as a free download. The trial version is complete with sample data that can be modified, so customers can see how the tool will work in their organization. The tool’s author is also available to help organization’s implement their succession planning process.

The complete succession planning pack and the free trial version are available for download from the Business Performance P/L website at www.businessperform.com/succession-planner

About Andy Beaulieu
Andy has over 20 years of performance improvement experience as both an internal specialist in global organizations and as an external consultant. Based in Washington DC, USA, his services span the spectrum of technical and interpersonal interventions. He has developed and implemented large-scale tools and systems to improve organizational effectiveness, and he has also coached and trained managers to improve their individual effectiveness.

Andy holds a master’s degree from Johns Hopkins University, and undergraduate degrees in engineering and business from the University of Pennsylvania. He has authored ten chapters in books on organizational effectiveness, most notably multiple entries in the renowned “Pfeiffer Annual” series published since 1971.

About Business Performance Pty Ltd
Established in 2003, Business Performance Pty Ltd provides business and management consulting services globally in a range of business areas. From its website, the company also proudly supplies a wide selection of business and management software products designed to make managing organizations easier and more effective. Products featured include tools, templates and guides in the areas of training and employee development, project management, organizational change and career planning. All products can be purchased and downloaded easily from anywhere in the world from the Business Performance Pty Ltd website at www.businessperform.com

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