This study explores the reasons why succession planning is imperative in an organisation. The study focuses on Nedbank Homeloans’ KZN Operations at the head office in central Durban and includes the views of the office staff about the salient issues in regards to succession planning. A comprehensive literature review provides a background to the study. A number of reasons for the need for succession planning have been provided by various writers, and these constitute the point of departure for the study. The broad themes that impact on the success of succession planning are identified as being the need to retain talent, to develop skills, and to enhance the benefits that can be derived from implementing succession planning in an organisation. In relation to these themes, the main objectives of the study were the following: to determine what benefits the organisation may achieve from implementing a succession plan; the significant impacts of not having a strategic succession plan; what an organisation can do to retain talented and competent employees; the role an organisation can play in sustaining skilled and talented people; and if the implementation of succession planning can support the career paths of employees not just up a specialised ladder but across a continuum of professional competence. The fieldwork was exploratory in nature, with a questionnaire being administered to seventyseven home-loan staff across the different levels of function. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) was used to analyse the data. Various statistical techniques such as Cronbach’s Alpha were applied to test reliability.An in-depth analysis of the results of the questionnaire was performed. The results of the study were evaluated and various recommendations are made. An implementation plan is provided to aid in the implementation process. / Thesis (MBA)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Westville, 2010.

M.Tech (Department of Business Administration, Faculty of Management Sciences), Vaal University of Technology. / In terms of the Public Service Act, 1994, as amended by Act 30 of 2007, all government departments operate under a recruitment system whereby applicants and employees are selected for positions based on their qualifications for the job. Equity and fairness are underlying democratic values and principles of the system. Therefore, the system guards against pre-determined successors until such time as all qualified candidates are provided an equal opportunity to apply for, and be considered, for the job (RSA 1994). However, organisations need to ensure that the appropriate people are in place with the required values, skills and competencies that are necessary to bring about change and accomplish goals to drive organisational strategy forward. It is also necessary to ensure that a suitable leadership team is chosen to help preserve and build upon an organisation’s existing vision, mission and values. Ensuring that leaders have the appropriate skills, abilities and competencies is crucial to assist an organisation to implement its strategic direction and overall goals and objectives. The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of organisational strategy, recruitment strategy and organisational culture on effective succession planning in the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO). In this study, focus was on trait behavioural, situational and chaos leadership and management theories; and their relationship to succession planning. The study made use of a quantitative research technique. Quantitative primary research was conducted by employing a self-administered questionnaire in the gathering of primary data for the study. The target population comprised employees (from entry level to executive levels) of DIRCO based in Gauteng Province as well as 127 South African Embassies and Consulates in foreign countries. Descriptive analysis was used in the analysis of the sample composition and participants’ perception of succession planning at DIRCO. Furthermore, confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modelling (SEM) was used to assess model fit and to test the hypotheses. The results of the study confirmed that the recruitment strategy of DIRCO does not create opportunities for identification of internal talent. In order to address these deficiencies, it is recommended that DIRCO identify, mentor and promote diverse pools of internal candidates through succession planning. A proper succession plan will provide an organisation with a surplus of talent and will assist officials to realise their potential. DIRCO prefers to recruit external candidates rather than developing training programmes that will prepare the internal workforce for future leadership positions. The results indicate that lack of organisational and recruitment strategies have substantial influence on organisational processes.