Melbourne, Australia -- (ReleaseWire) -- 02/05/2010 -- As the economy is starting to pick up, leading organizations are doing their utmost to keep their talented employees. In the area of talent management, Business Performance P/L led the way this week with the new release of their Succession Planner software.

The new version of Succession Planner builds on its key capability of tracking, managing and reporting succession nominations. A key benefit with Succession Planner is that it is based on Microsoft Excel. Leslie Allan, Managing Director of Business Performance P/L, explained, “Succession Planner really cuts to the chase in avoiding the complexity and administrative overhead of other talent management tools. By using the familiar and simple Excel interface, our software makes light work of managing leadership potential in any organization.”

Andy Beaulieu, the tool’s author, has over 20 years of experience in the human resources and organization effectiveness field. His work with organizations over that period offered him an intimate understanding of what works and what does not work for businesses trying to manage their talent pool. Time saving aspects of the tool include an informative Organization Chart. The chart displays the succession status of incumbents and is automatically updated with changes. Another key feature customers find essential is the C-P Matrix. This matrix plots visually the distribution of staff using the key variables of contribution and potential. Customers can also easily generate reports for informing key leaders about any individual and any position in the database.

In developing this new version, Beaulieu wanted to add some new functionality without sacrificing the simplicity of the tool. “One such enhancement”, Beaulieu explains, “is the ability to view the names of associates falling into each of the nine boxes in the C-P Matrix. Users wanted not only the statistics (percentages) but also the specific names to better equip them to prescribe development for associates in different stages of their leadership journey.” Allan added, “In this version, we have kept the features that worked well, such as the bonus Process Guide that lays out a simple business process for collecting, reviewing, and validating nominations. Users are treated to a number of significant enhancements, including expanded capacity and increased flexibility.”

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 http://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 http://www.businessperform.com