Thread:Betty2015/@comment-28694170-20161005015622/@comment-32738051-20161013041327

Yea, Betty! Freedom...for now. 😉 Sorry, I meant to respond before now but well you know what happened this weekend to Windows users in game. 😲

I don't know how it is in Canada but here in the U.S. when one goes on leave from a job it could be a personal one or one that falls under FMLA regulations. Normally, one's accrued but unused vacation/PTO is used up so the first part of the leave is paid. After that, personal leaves are unpaid but FMLA can be partially paid, if one has STD (and later LTD). Unless it's worker's comp, which works differently. Hopefully at least part of your leave will be paid.

It sounds like you are considering returning to your job after the leave. I've found that sometimes that works out but not usually if one's work environment was a psychologically or emotionally toxic one, as yours appears to be. I will hope for the best for you but I fear that as long as those 2 people you have the most issues with are still there, it will continue to be a bad place for you to work. You never know though...maybe enough of the right people will realize the value you added and either force the bad people out or make them do better. One can only hope.

As for succession planning, you and your friend are quite right...it is very much a hot topic and all large employers are concerned about it. With so much of the workforce aging and retiring plus with so many other employees changing jobs several times before retirement, it is becoming a crisis. But very few large employers have a clue how to handle it adequately...they still fill positions when there is an opening but it usually takes time to fill, leaving gaps in the meantime, and is often only addressed once there is already an opening or about to be one. No wonder though as it is a very complex subject that has to look at a myriad of variables and there are a lot of prerequisites a workplace has to handle well first, which often they don't, before they can even begin to plan for succession. While I don't discount that succession planning is important, I would argue that contingency planning is not only more important but that there has to be a solid contingency plan in place before any succession plan can succeed or even be developed. Part of contingency planning, and usually also succession planning, is cross-training so that there are workers who can adequately fill in for absent or exiting workers. But a lot of workplaces don't budget adequate time and resources for adequate cross-training to exist, assuming they even believe in and promote cross-training in the first place. And employees might not support it because it can at least appear to erode what little, if any, job security they might have. However, managed and maintained well, cross-training has significant advantages not only for the business but also the workforce. Not that succession planning shouldn't be addressed but I think probably the main reason it isn't done isn't the time involved but rather everything that should be considered and addressed beforehand, including contingency planning. Succession planning is at least possible, if not easier, when there is already a culture, at all position levels but particularly management and HR, of better hiring and onboarding practices, adequate employee development (including on-the-job training, cross-training, job rotation and mentoring), appropriate and fair performance management practices, and sufficient workforce scheduling (accounting for job accommodation as well as all absences - training/development, vacation/PTO, leaves, and worker's comp).

By the way, are you a member of HRPA and/or SHRM and are you HR certified? If not, you might want to look into it. The certification looks good when seeking HR jobs or promotions and, if you decide to run your own business, vital to HR contracting. And the professional associations give you access to vast resources for knowledge and assistance. You might also consider joining the OD Network and ATD, if you haven't already. And if you're on LinkedIn, SHRM has a networking group there as does LinkedIn itself. Just some thoughts. Hope it helps.