In this world of cut throat competition, companies are putting tremendous effort to hire competent employees and to develop relevant competencies in their existing employees.  In this slowing economy where so many companies are fighting for limited resources and talent, it is very important for organizations to incessantly reassess their competencies, update it and have the courage to make the necessary changes. It is equally imperative for a firm to define a set of core competencies which corresponds with its key market differentiators. This is where competency mapping plays a key role.  It is the process of identification of the competencies and the level of proficiency required in it to perform a given job or role efficiently. Every job requires some set of attributes whether it is technical, managerial or behavioural to perform the same successfully;

Competencies include the collection of success factors necessary for achieving important results in a specific job or work role in a particular organization. Success factors are combinations of knowledge, skills, Companies have long realised the importance of competency mapping as an important HR function. The assessment tests for competency mapping helps companies understand their employees better Therefore Career and succession planning involves assessing employees’ capability to take on new challenges. The paper focuses on the Competency based succession planning by Developing a Succession Planning Program and implementing it in the organisation.

Key words : Competency, Program , Career and Succession Planning