The Perspective of Administrative and Professional Staff on Succession Planning in a Tertiary Institution in Ghana

Abstract

The study examined the perspectives of senior members of the administrative
and professional staff of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and
Technology (KNUST), Kumasi, Ghana, on succession planning in the
University. A questionnaire was used to collect data and information from
136 randomly sampled administrative and professional staff of the
University. Content analysis and descriptive statistics were used to analyse
the data and information collected from the respondents. The results indicate
that there is no well-structured programme or a policy document that guides
succession planning in the University. Majority (71.4%) indicated that
currently, the succession planning being practiced which is in the form of
rotation and mentorship does not lead to significant staff retention among
the professional and administrative senior members and the achievement of
the University’s goals. The results also revealed that most of the respondents
did not appreciate the benefits of succession planning and, therefore, there
is the need for education among this category of staff. The study recommends
that the University should formulate and implement a succession planning
policy to reduce staff attrition and prepare them for leadership positions.