The lack of succession HR planning in law enforcement agencies
| Published date | 01 December 2023 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1177/14613557231183607 |
| Author | Konstantinos G. Papaioannou,Panagiotis K. Serdaris |
| Date | 01 December 2023 |
| Subject Matter | Original Research Articles |
The lack of succession HR planning in law
enforcement agencies
Konstantinos G. Papaioannou
University of Western Macedonia, Greece
Panagiotis K. Serdaris
University of Western Macedonia, Greece
Abstract
This article examines the implementation of succession human resources (HR) planning in law enforcement agencies. Α
quantitative–descriptive survey was carried out, and questionnaires were completed by 302 executives from Greek law
enforcement agencies (Hellenic Police and Hellenic Coastguard), through random sampling. The survey highlighted severe
concerns, reflecting a lack of implementation of succession HR planning in both agencies. Succession HR planning, defined
as the timely handling of personnel needs (qualitative–quantitative) required for the organization to maintain its perform-
ance at high levels, is applied to a minimum extent in the Hellenic Police and Hellenic Coastguard. It seems that these
organizations do not follow a specific plan to cover their needs in personnel or other operational matters. The study
makes a significant contribution on a theoretical and practical level. The research exposes the problem of the non-imple-
mentation of succession HR planning in law enforcement agencies. Using the data highlighted by this study, these agencies
will be able to implement HR planning to maximize personnel performance and respond to the crucial role they play in
society. Future research in law enforcement agencies over the wider area of Greece or other countries should be con-
ducted to draw more representative conclusions.
Keywords
Succession HR planning, H.R.M., performance management, law enforcement agencies, public sector
Submitted 26 Dec 2022, Revise received 21 May 2023, accepted 6 Jun 2023
Introduction
The importance of human resource management (HRM) in
increasing employee performance, and consequently organ-
izational performance, has been confirmed by several
studies, mainly in recent decades (Boxall et al., 2009;
Fischer et al., 1999; Hendry and Pettigrew, 1986; Malik,
2018). To achieve the goal of increased performance, orga-
nizations focus on implementing HRM functions, which
according to the international literature include succession
planning, job descriptions, staff recruitment and selection,
performance evaluation, compensation, training and devel-
opment, the health and safety working of the environment,
and labour–internal relations (Armstrong and Taylor, 2014;
Beardwell and Claydon, 2010; DeCenzo et al., 2016;
Maalderink, 2014), to gain a so-called competitive advan-
tage in the market (Dessler, 2016).
Given that succession HR planning is directly connected
to the maximization of an organization’s performance, the
purpose of this study is to examine its implementation in
law enforcement agencies, because most surveys have
focused on the relationship between performance and
HRM, and not on the implementation of HRM in practice,
Corresponding author:
Konstantinos G. Papaioannou, Department of Management Science &
Technology, University Of Western Macedonia, School of Economic
Sciences, Kila, Kozani 50100, Greece.
Email: k_papaioannou@hotmail.com
Original Research Article
International Journal of
Police Science & Management
2023, Vol. 25(4) 473–483
© The Author(s) 2023
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DOI: 10.1177/14613557231183607
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