Employee Transition Plan

Research shows that “1 in 5 workers are in the wrong job” – Business News Daily

A good worker in the wrong job is disastrous for the company and the employee. Transitioning them to a new position is, without a doubt, the right thing to do.

However, the process of helping employees let go of the old and accept the new can be stressful, not only for the manager but for the entire team. 

Having an employee transition plan in place during these times of change will ensure a smooth transition, preserve relationships on all sides, and support business continuity.

Take a look at the Process Street employee transition plan. Our plan summarizes what needs to be done for a smooth transition to take place. It will document the responsibilities of the sender and receiver departments. It will provide a task list for involved staff members. It will enforce a timeline for the transition and it will list key knowledge transfer methods and contact information. 

You will need this employee transition plan to minimize disruption and uncertainty for employees affected by the change.

Process Street is super-powered checklists. It’s the easiest way to manage your recurring tasks, procedures and workflows. Create a template and run individual checklists for each member of your team. You can check tasks off as you work through them, set deadlines, add approvals, assign tasks, and track each team member’s progress. You can also connect to thousands of Apps through Zapier and automate your workflows even more.

Complete the checklist details in the fields below. 

Enter the details of the incumbent employee in the fields below. 

Enter the details of the successor employee in the fields below. 

Assign the below tasks to the successors new line manager so they can complete transition orientation tasks.  

Assign the following tasks to the successor’s new line manager: 

Task 8

Task 9

Task 18

Task 19

Task 20

Assign the below tasks to the successors current line manager so they can complete transition handover tasks.  

Assign the following tasks to the successors current line manager: 

Task 14

Task 15

Task 16

THIS TASK SHOULD BE COMPLETED BY THE SUCCESSORS NEW LINE MANAGER

Summarize the key responsibilities and objectives of the successor’s new role. This summary should highlight the specific tasks and initiatives that the successor must take on.

THIS TASK SHOULD BE COMPLETED BY THE SUCCESSORS NEW LINE MANAGER

Detail five pieces of critical knowledge/skills that the incumbent should pass to the successor to help them in their new role.

If there are more than five pieces of knowledge/skills that need to be transferred to the successor, add additional fields.

Find out how to add additional fields/content to your checklists here or here.

Knowledge/skill 1

If you have other/different transfer methods, read this article to help you add them to the multi-select drop-down. 

Knowledge/skill 2

Knowledge/skill 3

Knowledge/skill 4

Knowledge/skill 5

These are key transition activities that must be completed by the HR department to facilitate the transition.

Send this email to notify IT/Facilities about the pending new location and relevant system IDs, password and access changes.

Notify all staff of pending position changes

Set deadline dates for the successor’s current line manager to complete all handover tasks by and the successors new line manager to complete all orientation tasks by. 

These handover tasks must be completed by the successor’s current line manager, by a certain date, to facilitate a smooth transition.

THIS TASK SHOULD BE COMPLETED BY THE SUCCESSORS CURRENT LINE MANAGER

Gather the following critical information about the successor’s existing role.

This task need to be completed by: {{form.Select_a_date_for_all_‘Handover_tasks’_to_be_completed_by_(tasks_14-16):}}

THIS TASK SHOULD BE COMPLETED BY THE SUCCESSORS CURRENT LINE MANAGER

Send an email notification to all customers likely to be affected by the role change. 

This task needs to be completed by:{{form.Select_a_date_for_all_‘Handover_tasks’_to_be_completed_by_(tasks_14-16):}}

THIS TASK SHOULD BE COMPLETED BY THE SUCCESSORS CURRENT LINE MANAGER

Conduct a final performance review by completing this employee evaluation form or this performance review template.

Or, you can create your own performance review template and add it to this checklist as a ‘checklist run link‘, by following these instructions.  

This task needs to be completed by: {{form.Select_a_date_for_all_‘Handover_tasks’_to_be_completed_by_(tasks_14-16):}}

These orientation tasks must be completed by the successor’s new line manager, by a certain date, to facilitate a smooth transition.

THIS TASK SHOULD BE COMPLETED BY THE SUCCESSORS NEW LINE MANAGER

Discuss the following new role details with the successor.

This task needs to be completed by: {{form.Select_a_date_for_all_‘Orientation_tasks’_to_be_completed_by_(tasks_18-20)}}

Job title: {{form.Successor_employees_new_role}}

Start date: {{form.Successor_employees_start_date}}

Accountabilities:
{{form.Role_accountabilities:}}

Direct reports:
{{form.Direct_reports:}}

Role expectations:
{{form.Role_expectations:}}

Training requirements:
{{form.Training_requirements:}}

Key contact information: 
{{form.List_all_key_contact_information:}}

Location of key documents:
{{form.Record_the_locations_of_all_key_documents_and_records:}}

THIS TASK SHOULD BE COMPLETED BY THE SUCCESSORS NEW LINE MANAGER

Send an email notification to all customers likely to be affected by the role change. 

This task needs to be completed by: {{form.Select_a_date_for_all_‘Orientation_tasks’_to_be_completed_by_(tasks_18-20)}}

THIS TASK SHOULD BE COMPLETED BY THE SUCCESSORS NEW LINE MANAGER

Take the successor round to meet the team to make sure they feel welcome. 

This task needs to be completed by: {{form.Select_a_date_for_all_‘Orientation_tasks’_to_be_completed_by_(tasks_18-20)}}

Create and upload the transition proposal.  This will need approval from the following people:

• Incumbent employee
• Successor employee
• Successors new line manager
• Successors current line manager 

Sources

• Business News Daily – Strategies for Successful Employee Transition
• Management Training Specialists – 3 Quick Tips On A Smooth Employee Transition Process
• Bizfluent – How to Write a Transition Plan
• Department of Health – Human Resources (HR) Transition Framework 
• Inc – Facilitate a Smooth Internal Transition for Your Employee With These 7 Tips
• The University of California – ITS Staff Transition Plan

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