Helping startups to scale 🦄 ✦ Driving Halo Lab 7 → 8-figures ARR & having fun ✦ Founder with Design in ❤️

I run Design & Tech Agency helping brands become TOP 1%.

✦ $530 M raised + 9-figure exits by client startups 
✦ 500+ projects delivered
✦ 99+ international awards
✦ 4.9 / 5.0 average rating on Clutch from 80+ verified reviews

This is a real impact in numbers.

—

Over the past 15 yrs I’ve been shaping digital products and brands for category‑defining companies — from NOKIA and OPERA to high‑growth SaaS and Web3 start‑ups.

My core focus is design leadership at scale: I enter as a strategic partner, craft a vision, and lead multidisciplinary teams all the way from concept to launch.

—

I specialize in:

⤷  B2B SaaS Product Design | Guiding startups and enterprise spin‑ups from 0 to 1 — turning complex tech into intuitive, emotionally resonant experiences.

⤷  High‑Performance Digital Presence | Building conversion‑focused brand websites that turn first impressions into lasting growth.

—

Have BIG idea in mind?
Contact me directly: inquiry@halo-lab.com

Artem Borysenko

But bad UX silently kills revenue, retention, user trust.

How does it look in your product:

❌ Focus on action, not on the result for the user.
❌ Complex password requirements.
❌ Two fields for the email address.
❌ Unclear question & option. 
❌ Annoying captcha.

Why does this matter for founders?
Bad UX = friction.
Friction = drop-offs.
Drop-offs = lost revenue.

Investing in clarity, consistency, and simplicity is a growth lever.

✦ Before spending more on ads, check:

→ Can users complete your core flows in seconds without thinking?
→ Are you showing users what happens next at each step?
→ Is every element earning its place, or just adding noise?

At Halo Lab — Your Digital Partner, we’ve seen micro UX cleanups increase demo bookings, reduce support tickets, and boost LTV.
Because great products don’t just work, they feel effortless.

✦

Want a quick UX audit on your product?
Drop your URL below or DM me.
We’ll send you one actionable UX fix that could move your metrics this quarter.

♻️ Share this to help others build better products.
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Founder @ Halo Lab ✦ Design & Tech Agency Helping Brands Become TOP 1%

Bad UX examples

But bad UX silently kills revenue, retention, user trust.

How does it look in your product:

❌ Inconsistent UX writing.
❌Too much content, perceived as overload.
❌Linear progress bars aren’t mobile-friendly.
❌Overloaded layout that pulls attention away.
❌ Key details are hard to spot, and the offerings feel like a maze.

Why does this matter for founders?
Bad UX = friction.
Friction = drop-offs.
Drop-offs = lost revenue.

Investing in clarity, consistency, and simplicity is a growth lever.

✦ Before spending more on ads, check:

→ Can users complete your core flows in seconds without thinking?
→ Are you showing users what happens next at each step?
→ Is every element earning its place, or just adding noise?

At Halo Lab — Your Digital Partner, we’ve seen micro UX cleanups increase demo bookings, reduce support tickets, and boost LTV.
Because great products don’t just work, they feel effortless.

✦

Want a quick UX audit on your product?
Drop your URL below or DM me.
We’ll send you one actionable UX fix that could move your metrics this quarter.

♻️ Share this to help others build better products.
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Most companies still treat a design system as a visual asset.

In reality, it behaves more like infrastructure.

It's a one-time capital investment that reduces operating costs across every product, every release, and every team.

Here’s where the real financial return shows up:

1. Reduction of duplicated efforts across teams.

When teams reinvent or create their own designs for elements like spacing, colors, states, or micro-interactions, they incur the following new costs: a new desig, codebase, QA.

With a standardized token system, there is no longer any need for this cycle to occur. 

2. Component scalability across product portfolios.

A system built for a suite compounds value:
Build once → reuse for every new feature → reuse for every new product.
This is how product orgs cut delivery time by 20–40% without adding headcount.

3. Patterns decrease cognitive load and time spent deciding.

Standardizing onboarding, dashboards, permissions, navigation, or error states will eliminate debate about core design principles among teams. Instead, team members will spend more time identifying the activities that will result in increased KPIs.

4. The cost of change decreases dramatically.

With no design system: A rebrand, accessibility update, or micro-interaction change triggers weeks of redesign and recoding..

With a design system: Update the source → every product updates automatically.

✦

A strong design system improves:

- Time to market.
- Cross-platform trust.
- Developer throughput.
- Conversion and activation.

✦

Build your design system for the next three products you launch. 
You will begin seeing returns on your investment in the early years.

🔔 Follow Artem Borysenko for more updates!

Therapy of the future: how we helped ensure a better patient experience by updating the design of the myReha digital platform.

myReha, created by nyra health, is a digital neurotherapy platform that helps stroke survivors and patients with neurological conditions continue recovery.

When the nyra health team, led by Mario Zusag, reached out, they had a clear goal: make the platform more consistent, intuitive, and scalable without disrupting what patients already loved.

The challenge?
Functionality was not consistent across devices, resulting in multiple users experiencing friction accessing the platform and seeking simplicity and reassurance.

So, we focused on what truly matters in healthcare design: clarity, confidence, and care.

1. We unified card designs for consistency.
2. Clarified CTAs for premium upgrades.
3. Improved streak and progress screens.
4. Optimized dashboards and navigation for clinicians and patients alike.

The Halo Lab — Your Digital Partner team fine-tuned the system to ensure it could scale fast and support nyra health’s insurance readiness and market expansion while staying deeply patient-centered.

Huge thanks to the nyra health team for trusting us with such meaningful work.

✦

If you’re building a product that redefines how patients heal, we’d love to help bring your vision to life.

🔔 Follow Artem Borysenko for more updates!

Case Study

That’s the moment most brands lose people.

In that split second when something just feels off.

You’ve felt it too.
Website that looks polished but somehow doesn’t feel real.
The words are there.
The design is fine.
But it doesn’t connect.

That’s a trust gap.
In those first few seconds, visitors are quietly asking:
→ “Is this for people like me?”
→ “Do they actually understand my problem?”
→ “Can I explore without being sold to?”

If your homepage doesn’t answer those fast, even a great product starts to feel risky.

The fix isn’t louder headlines or flashier visuals.

It’s smaller, more human details:
1. Clear language that sounds like something you’d actually say.
2. Honest proof that real people built this, not a faceless company.
3. Calm, confident design that gives users room to breathe.

Trust doesn’t start with “we’re the best.”
It starts with “we get you.”

♻️ Share this to help others build trust with customers.
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Homepage Psychology

You can hire a designer.

Or you can hire a design brain.

One gives you beautiful screens.
The other gives you a product that thinks.

When you hire a single designer, you get skills.
When you hire a team that works as one brain, you get experience that compounds.

At Halo Lab — Your Digital Partner, our teams don’t work in silos.
The UX researcher sees what frustrates users.
The product designer connects it to business goals.
The UI designer turns it into clarity and trust.
The developer translates it into something fast and functional.

Each person covers a blind spot the others can’t.
And together, they don’t just design, they solve.

That’s the difference between design as a task and design as a system.
Between a pretty interface and a product that scales, converts, and feels effortless to use.

When founders realize this, everything changes:

1. They stop hiring portfolios.
2. They start hiring thinking systems - teams that anticipate problems before they appear, align design with ROI, and build products that last.

If you’re scaling your product, don’t just hire a designer.
Hire a brain that’s trained to think like your users and build like your business depends on it.

🔔 Follow Artem Borysenko for more updates!

I audit real websites. I show what’s broken.

I explain why it doesn’t work.
And I give fixes you can apply today.

These are to help YOU avoid the same mistakes.
Every carousel = free consulting.
If you take the time to apply the lessons, your site will convert better.
Guaranteed.

In each post, you'll find:
✅ Conversion blockers you might not see.
✅ Layout tweaks that improve clarity.
✅ Real examples of what not to do.
✅ UX advice backed by data and practice.

✦

New audit just dropped.
Go through the carousel.
Steal what works.
Fix what doesn’t.

And if you want your site reviewed next:
Comment “ROAST ME” below.

Let’s build stuff that sells. Not just looks good.

♻️ Share this to help others design better webpages.
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Website roasting

Helping people move better shouldn’t feel complicated. 

That’s what makes Rytmo such a powerful idea.

When the Rytmo team first shared their vision, it was inspiring.

They were building 

- A way for people recovering from injury or training with a specialist to feel guided, not overwhelmed.

- A way for coaches and physiotherapists to finally track movement in a way that feels intuitive.

- A way for patients to feel progress, not pressure.

Our role at Halo Lab — Your Digital Partner was simple in intention but meaningful in impact:

1. Turn complex motion-tracking technology into a visual language anyone can understand.

2. Design an interface that supports both ends (the patient and the specialist ) without friction.

3. Create a unified UX that reinforces trust, motivation, and confidence with every action.

We redesigned flows so users never feel lost.
We shaped progress screens that celebrate even small wins.
We built a design system flexible enough to scale as Rytmo grows without ever losing its gentle, supportive core.

Huge thanks to the entire Rytmo team for trusting us with something this important.

Your commitment to building a better experience for patients and specialists is real, rare, and deeply needed in the industry.

✦

If you're building something meaningful in healthtech - a product that helps people feel safer, stronger, healthier - we’d love to collaborate.
Let’s create the next story together.

♻️ Share this to inspire others.
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Most founders think onboarding is just a checklist.

A few tooltips, a welcome email, maybe a product tour.

Big mistake.

First 7 days don't only determine retention, they forecast lifetime value.

The best products don't "teach" features. They create habits.

Here is what distinguishes your high-LTV onboarding from the rest.

1. Show value quickly.
Don't explain — show. 
Get your users to the "aha" moment in minutes, not days. 

2. Guide behavior, not swipes. 
Organize onboarding around your user's journey, not your feature tree. 
Day 1: Solve a problem. 
Day 2: Build context. 
Day 3+: Reinforce success and add proof.

3. Make it personal. 
A marketer ≠ an engineer ≠ a founder. 
Ask one smart question, customize the flow, and you can expect 25-50% higher activation.

4. Build habit loops. 
Cue → Simple action → Instant reward. 
“Don’t lose your progress” is always better than “Complete your profile.”

4. Measure what matters. 
Forget “onboarding completed.” 
Measure: 
• Time to first value.
• % of users hitting core action Day 1.
• Retention at Day 3 and 7.

Onboarding is not your tutorial. 
It’s behavioral design. 
And as soon as you start to treat it that way, your retention will improve, as will your revenue.

♻️ Share this if it resonates.
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Good interfaces are built for humans with roles, moods, habits.

And most “design rules” don’t cover that part.

Here are the non-obvious principles we now swear by:

1. Design for roles.

An operator, manager, and analyst can see “the same tool” but they are living three different narratives.

2. Tell a story.

Good UI behaves like a scene in a movie: each frame indicates, “Here’s what happens next.”

3. Simplicity isn’t minimalism.

It’s knowing what to conceal. A complex system should feel simple, even if it is not.

4. One action per screen.

Every screen should answer one question. The moment users have to pause, you’ve lost the moment.

5. Adapt, don’t copy.

There is no “best practice” for everybody.
A healthtech dashboard and a crypto wallet shouldn’t look/feel the same, and that’s a feature not a flaw.

6. Accessibility is a growth strategy.

It’s how you earn trust and give access to the people your competitors are forgetting.

The best interfaces don’t impress. They disappear.
You’re not noticing them because they are busy making you feel capable.

What was the last interface you loved using is, and why?

♻️ Share if you agree.
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I have looked through hundreds of product interfaces.

And most trust issues come from invisible details that are saying, "We did not care enough."

1. Text locked in images.
It seems nice... until you realize:
Google can't read it.
Screen readers aren't being able to get through it.
It is going to break on mobile.

✅ Fix: Always use proper, responsive HTML text overlaid on visuals. That communicates quality and care.

2. Stock photos with zero context.
If your visuals could go on any website, they shouldn't be on yours. 
People simply don't connect with "perfect smiles" and "handshakes in glass offices."
User's even notice when an image doesn't match what they are viewing.

✅ Fix: Use visuals with your product, actual people or even simple, authentic brand illustrations. Authenticity scales better than aesthetics.

3. Inconsistent spacing.
Uneven padding. A headline that is floating. Tight corners next to wide gaps. Users may never name the issue, but they feel it.
That feeling? Uncertainty. And uncertainty is lethal when it comes to conversion.

✅ Fix: Use a modular grid and consistent spacing system. Regular rhythm = subconscious trust.

What’s the smallest design detail that instantly makes you lose trust in a product?

🔔 Follow Artem Borysenkofor more updates!

Guess which of our projects gained more views?

Drop A, B, C, or D in the comments.

But don’t just guess. Consider:

🔹 What details stand out? 
🔹 Which design feels more refined? 
🔹 What makes one stronger than the other?

This isn’t just a fun test.
It’s how you train your creative judgment.
The more you analyze, the faster you recognize what works.

A, B, С, or D? Drop your guess below! Let’s level up together.

The best design

Most founders struggle to explain their product in 10 sec.

And that’s usually why people forget it.

Founders jump into features, tech, or long backstories.
But the products that stick are the ones described with immediate clarity.

After helping dozens of teams simplify their pitch and homepage messaging, here are 3 frameworks that consistently work:

1️⃣ The “Movie Trailer” Line.
Hit emotion + problem + solution in one shot.

Structure:
“We help [audience] solve [problem] through [unique solution].”

Example:
 “We help remote teams brainstorm faster with an AI whiteboard that auto-organizes ideas.”

This gives people the whole story instantly.

2️⃣ The “Six-Second Test”. If you can answer these in one tight sentence, you’re done:
• Who it’s for.
• What it does.
• Why it’s different.
• What problem it solves.
• What outcome it creates.

Example:
 “For busy parents, our app plans healthy meals automatically — saving hours and reducing food waste.”

3️⃣ The “Anchor to the Familiar.”
When something is new, you need a shortcut.

Structure:
 “It’s like [familiar thing], but for [your context].”

Example:
 “It’s like Airbnb, but for campers.”
It reduces cognitive load and accelerates understanding.

If someone can’t repeat your product back to you after 10 seconds, you don’t have a messaging problem, you have a clarity problem.

What’s your 10-second product explanation?

♻️ Share if this helped.
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Last week, I tried to book a demo of a new tool.

Those 20 seconds told me everything.

Product UX failed here.
I scrolled twice. 
Clicked the wrong button. 
Didn’t find clues.
And gave up.

Review your product like a first-time user.

And try to fix UX issues.

1. Watch the heatmaps.
When a user pauses, backtracks, or clicks twice, that’s a red flag.
Confusion shows up in body language before it shows in analytics.

2. Check forms first.
Long fields. Missing confirmations. Mobile layouts that break.
Forms kill more conversions than bad marketing ever will.

3. Scan for “dead weight.”
Buttons nobody clicks. Copy nobody reads. Features nobody touches.
If it doesn’t guide the user forward, it’s friction.

4. Run 10-minute heuristic checks.
Navigation, readability, error states, consistency.

These basics sound boring, but they fix 80% of user frustration.
You don’t need a 3-month research sprint to uncover UX flaws.
You need sharp eyes, real users in mind, and the discipline to ask:
“Where does this experience break trust?”

♻️ Share this to help others avoid UX issues.
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 How to find UX problems

“$5K for a full app” should set off alarm bells.

I’ve seen founders get burned by quotes that sound too good to be true.

And here’s the reality: they usually are.

A credible app budget runs anywhere from $50K–$250K+, depending on scope and complexity. 

At $5K, what you’re really buying is a prototype, a landing MVP, or a template, not a production-grade product.

The hidden costs show up later:

✦ No discovery → scope creep and endless change requests.
✦ No QA → your users become the testers.
✦ No maintenance plan → apps break as OS versions and APIs update.
✦ No IP clarity → some “cheap shops” keep the repo keys, locking you in.
✦ No security → exposing you to compliance fines or breaches (the average costs $4.9M globally).

So what does a serious proposal include?

1. Discovery: user flows, integrations, edge cases.
2. Delivery plan: milestones, QA, release strategy.
3. Security & compliance baked in.
4. Ongoing ops & maintenance plan.

🚩 If a vendor quotes $5K for the whole thing, don’t think “deal.” 
Think “demo.”
The real bill will come later, in rewrites, downtime, or lost trust.

The smarter play: if budget is tight, scope a small, clear MVP with defined limits and a real path to production. 

That way, your “cheap” start doesn’t become an expensive rewrite.

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What founders actually need from a design partner.

Across many startup projects, one pattern is clear:

Founders don’t need resources.
They need a partner with a product mindset.
That team will give you clarity, speed, and traction.
Let’s look at the difference.

1. Designers make wireframes.
Product thinkers define outcomes.

2. Designers ship features.
Product thinkers shape systems.

3. Designers follow tasks.
Product thinkers challenge assumptions.

4. Designers deliver visuals.
Product thinkers deliver clarity.

5. Designers optimize screens.
Product thinkers optimize revenue.

A design partner shouldn’t just make your product look good.
They should make your business stronger.
Because the right partner doesn’t just design interfaces,
they help you think, operate, and grow like a product company.

✦

If you’re scaling and you need a dedicated team that thinks like your co-founder, not your vendor, let’s talk.

♻️ Share if it resonates.
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The plan is clear, the prototype is exciting.

But there’s a quiet signal that something is wrong.

Because the MVP shape is wrong.
Too frequently, MVPs wind up created as demos.
They’re polished enough to show, broad enough to dazzle users, and thin enough that they can’t generate persistent, repeatable value.

Here’s the shift that will actually move the meter: An MVP is not the smallest version of your product. It is the smallest engine of recurring value.

That distinction forces you to ask:

1. What is the one capability users must succeed at?
2. What must be there so the system works without us holding it together manually?
3. What closes the feedback loop, not just opens it?

When you design an MVP from that perspective, you start developing outcomes:

✔ Clarity on measurable value.
✔ One solution for users with or without you.
✔ One core workflow that gains repetitive usage.
✔ Just enough automation to avoid operational drag.
✔ One feedback loop where you learn every time - how to scale.

This is how products gain traction early.
Build the smallest version of your value engine.
That’s the MVP you actually need.

♻️ Share this to help others create MVPs.
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The MVP You Actually Need

The hardest thing about building an AI product is getting people to trust what it does.

You can create a great model all you want, but as soon as users feel the slightest bit of uncertainty, they are going to ponder, hesitate, and leave.

When founders build trust into the product experience, three things happen fast.

1. Users stop second-guessing and start exploring. First session activation goes up because they understand the what and whys.

2. Every click of trust compounds itself into usage, retention, and upsell. Without trust, the best AI feature will remain unused.

3. You do not have to wait for product market fit to learn how users actually feel. Trust patterns can save you weeks of guessing, and reduce the launch chaos.

4. Transparent UX with design-based trust cuts confusion before it even reaches support. No more "I am left wondering why it said that?" tickets or bad reviews for hallucinations.

Most AI products are built for power. 
The real winners are built for confidence.

✦

At Halo Lab — Your Digital Partner, we help founders design AI products users trust enough to actually use and pay for.
If that’s the stage you’re at, let’s chat.

♻️ Share this to help others build AI products.
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Design Patterns For AI Interfaces

“How much does a website cost?”

Everyone loves the safe answer: “It depends.”

But that doesn’t help when you’re budgeting, forecasting, or explaining ROI to your board.

So here’s a straightforward breakdown.

1️⃣ Landing Page.
$1,000–$5,000
A single, conversion-driven page. Perfect for launches or campaigns.
Simple structure but every word, interaction, and visual must earn its place.

2️⃣ Small Business Website.
$5,000–$15,000
Usually 4–6 pages: Home, Services, About, Contact, and maybe a Blog.
You get custom branding, clean UI, and a structure that builds trust fast.

3️⃣ eCommerce Website.
$25,000–$100,000
Product listings, filters, navigation logic, checkout systems, mobile optimization.
At this tier, UX becomes critical because every friction point = abandoned carts.

4️⃣ SaaS Marketing Website.
$75,000–$300,000
Your website becomes part of the product experience.
It must tell your story, guide users to demos, handle content, and match your product’s design language.

5️⃣ Enterprise Website.
$20,000–$100,000+
Think of it as a digital ecosystem:
Dozens of templates, multilingual support, role-based navigation, integrations, governance rules.

The real question isn’t the price.
A website is your 24/7 sales team.
If it doesn’t convert, educate, or build trust, the real cost is the revenue you’re not capturing.

So instead of asking: “How much does a website cost?”
Ask: “How much is a weak website costing me every month?”

♻️ Share if this helps someone price smarter.
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Every product fosters feelings.

Slack develops curiosity (you check threads). 
LinkedIn develops affirmation (you observe reactions). 
Airbnb develops trust (you reside within somebody else's space). 
Uber develops control (you follow the car, the route, the pricing).

The emotional loop your product supports, becomes the habit that makes users return - or leave.

And here is where many teams miss.
Your design doesn't just support feelings. It influences them.

✦

For every engagement, a micro-feeling is triggered - frustration, relief, pride, fear. 
These micro-feelings accumulate into a memory. 
Then memory drives retention.

Behavioral design studies confirmed that:

✦ Positive feelings (clarity, control, competence) are proven to increase engagement by 30-40%.

✦ Unresolved frustration (human error, waiting, loss of context) is the leading cause of churn within SaaS and consumer apps.

So when your UX creates anxiety (loading uncertainty, unclear steps, overwhelming dashboards) - the user has accomplished their task, but subconsciously will avoid returning.

Ways to audit emotional design in your product.

1. Avatar: the emotion you want your users to feel. (Do you want them caring, empowered, energized, etc.?) 

2. Map the emotion to each interaction. For every step: "What is this moment teaching?" 

3. Test the users' reactions, not just the usability. Record facial expressions or tone, or even keywords in a survey, after each interaction. 

4. Design feedback loop(s)- use motion, microcopy, timing, etc. to bake in positive emotions in the experience.

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Ricardo Cuellar

HR professionals are trained to spot burnout in others. But we rarely recognize it in ourselves.

HR burnout doesn't announce itself. It builds quietly while you're busy supporting everyone else.

Here's what it actually looks like:

𝗘𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻𝘀 
Dreading your morning inbox. 
Feeling cynical about employees or leadership. 
Emotional exhaustion from managing everyone else's problems. 
Struggling to separate work stress from personal life. 
Losing empathy or feeling numb to workplace issues.

𝗣𝗵𝘆𝘀𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻𝘀 
Fatigue that sleep doesn't fix. 
Tension headaches or stomach problems. 
Trouble sleeping despite exhaustion. 
Getting sick more often than usual.

𝗕𝗲𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗼𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻𝘀 
Procrastinating on tasks you used to handle easily. 
Avoiding difficult conversations. 
Working longer hours but accomplishing less. 
Snapping at coworkers or family. 
Withdrawing from your professional community.

𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗳𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻𝘀 
Feeling like nothing you do matters. 
Second-guessing decisions you'd normally make with confidence. 
Fantasizing about quitting HR entirely. Losing interest in learning and development. 
Going through the motions instead of thinking strategically.

Recognizing these patterns is the first step. You can't pour from an empty cup, and HR deserves better support systems too.

♻️ Repost this if it could help someone in your network who needs to see it.

➕ Follow Ricardo Cuellar for more HR insights and career guidance.

HR Coach, Mentor • Helping HR grow • Follow for posts about people strategy, HR life, and leadership

Most succession plans fail before they even start.
 
Why? Because they're built around the org chart of today, not the business of tomorrow.
 
Here's how to fix that 👇
 
If you want a succession planning program that actually works, follow these 10 tips:
 
 1. 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗕𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝘆, 𝗡𝗼𝘁 𝗝𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗥𝗼𝗹𝗲𝘀 
    Align succession plans with where the business is headed, not just today's org chart. Ask: What skills will our leaders need 3–5 years from now?
    
 2. 𝗜𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗳𝘆 𝗖𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗥𝗼𝗹𝗲𝘀, 𝗡𝗼𝘁 𝗝𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗦𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗼𝗿 𝗢𝗻𝗲𝘀 
    Focus on positions that directly drive revenue, culture, or strategy. Succession isn't just for the C-suite, it's also for key technical and operational roles.
    
 3. 𝗗𝗲𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗖𝗮𝗽𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗖𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗹𝘆 
    Move beyond vague "leadership potential." Build a competency framework that defines the skills, behaviors, and values leaders must embody.
    
 4. 𝗨𝘀𝗲 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝘁𝗼 𝗦𝗽𝗼𝘁 𝗛𝗶𝗴𝗵-𝗣𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗧𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗻𝘁 
    Don't rely solely on manager nominations. Incorporate performance data, 360 feedback, and engagement scores to identify rising leaders.
    
 5. 𝗕𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝗗𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗶𝗽𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲 
    ensure underrepresented groups are intentionally considered. Monitor succession slates for diversity gaps and correct them proactively.
    
 6. 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗲𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝗔𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘀 
    Real leadership growth happens on the job. Assign high-potentials to lead initiatives, cross-functional projects, or turnaround challenges.
    
 7. 𝗣𝗮𝗶𝗿 𝗗𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗠𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 
    Match emerging leaders with experienced mentors. Formal mentoring programs accelerate growth and transfer institutional knowledge.
    
 8. 𝗠𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗜𝘁 𝗮 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝘂𝗼𝘂𝘀, 𝗟𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 
    Review and refresh succession plans regularly, not just once a year. Business priorities and talent readiness shift fast; the plan should too.
    
 9. 𝗠𝗲𝗮𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗠𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘀 
    Track metrics like internal promotion rates, bench strength, and turnover of high-potentials. Share results with executives to prove ROI.
    
10. 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗹𝘆 (𝗪𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗼𝗻) 
    Provide emerging leaders with clarity on their development path. You don't have to promise promotions, but showing investment builds engagement and retention.
 
Succession planning isn't about filling empty chairs, it's about ensuring your organization is always ready to grow, adapt, and thrive. The best programs are strategic, inclusive, and constantly evolving.
 
 
♻️ Repost this if you think it could help someone in your network build a stronger succession program.
 
And follow Ricardo Cuellar  for more HR insights and career guidance.

10 Tips for HR Pros Looking to Build A Successful Successi

"Q4 is slow, right?"

Tell that to HR.

While everyone else winds down, we're just getting started.

𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗟𝗜𝗦𝗧:
𝟭. 𝗕𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗳𝗶𝘁𝘀 𝗢𝗽𝗲𝗻 𝗘𝗻𝗿𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 
Running enrollment + answering the same questions 200 times (yes, the HSA and FSA are different)

𝟮. 𝗣𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄 𝗖𝘆𝗰𝗹𝗲𝘀 
Chasing down managers who've procrastinated all year, now scrambling to complete reviews

𝟯. 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 
Building merit increase models under tight deadlines with budgets that somehow shrunk

𝟰. 𝗛𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝗣𝗧𝗢 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗼𝘀 
Managing coverage gaps + fielding "Can I roll over my days?" requests daily

𝟱. 𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁 𝗙𝗼𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 
Planning for next year amid hiring freezes, budget cuts, and "let's be strategic" conversations

𝟲. 𝗬𝗲𝗮𝗿-𝗘𝗻𝗱 𝗧𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 
Processing exits that were conveniently delayed until "after Q3 earnings"

𝟳. 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 
Meeting hard government deadlines while juggling literally everything else

𝟴. 𝗘𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗼𝘆𝗲𝗲 𝗕𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗦𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁 
Counseling others through their exhaustion while managing our own

𝟵. 𝗕𝘂𝗱𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝗡𝗲𝗴𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 
Defending every HR investment for the upcoming year (yes, employee engagement matters)

𝟭𝟬. 𝗢𝗿𝗴𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘇𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝘀 
Managing leadership transitions, restructures, and "strategic pivots" before December 31st

Q4 in HR isn't a wind-down.
It's a sprint to the finish line while building the track for next year.

To every HR pro in the thick of it right now: I see you.

♻️ 𝗥𝗲𝗽𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗳𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝗛𝗥 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗳𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘀
➕ 𝗙𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄 Ricardo Cuellar 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗛𝗥 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗿 𝗴𝘂𝗶𝗱𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲

Most leadership development programs aren't building leaders, they're just checking boxes.
 
I've watched too many organizations invest heavily in succession planning, only to scramble when a key leader leaves. Why? Because their programs were built on flawed assumptions.
 
Here are 7 reasons leadership development and succession planning programs fail and what HR can do differently:
 
𝟭. 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺𝘀 𝗙𝗼𝗰𝘂𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝗧𝗶𝘁𝗹𝗲𝘀, 𝗡𝗼𝘁 𝗖𝗮𝗽𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀 
↳ Succession planning shouldn't be about "who's next in line", it's about "who's truly ready." When we promote based on tenure instead of leadership skill, we set people up to fail. HR must shift from filling seats to building capabilities that drive results.
 
𝟮. 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗜𝘀 𝗧𝗼𝗼 𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗰 
↳ Off-the-shelf leadership workshops rarely address your real business challenges. Leaders walk away with theory but no tools to apply. Development must be customized to your organization's strategy and culture, not borrowed from someone else's playbook.
 
𝟯. 𝗡𝗼 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗹-𝗧𝗶𝗺𝗲 𝗔𝗽𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝗦𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹𝘀 
↳ Leadership isn't learned in a classroom, it's tested on the job. Without stretch assignments or project ownership, future leaders don't get the reps they need. Programs fail when they don't embed learning into daily work.
 
𝟰. 𝗢𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗦𝗼𝗳𝘁 𝗦𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹𝘀 
↳ Many programs emphasize strategy and financial acumen but neglect emotional intelligence, communication, and coaching. The result? Leaders who are technically capable but fail to inspire or retain teams. "People skills" must be weighted as heavily as technical ones.
 
𝟱. 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗣𝗶𝗽𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀 𝗟𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗗𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗶𝘁𝘆 
↳ Too often, succession programs reinforce existing biases and recycle the same leadership profiles. Without intentional inclusion, we shrink innovation and alienate underrepresented talent. Diversity in your pipeline isn't just right, it's strategic.
 
𝟲. 𝗡𝗼 𝗖𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗠𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗦𝘂𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 
↳ Programs often track participation, not outcomes. "We trained 50 managers" isn't the same as "We improved retention of high potentials by 20%." Without metrics tied to business outcomes, programs lose executive support and funding.
 
𝟳. 𝗦𝘂𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗻𝘀 𝗦𝗶𝘁 𝗼𝗻 𝗮 𝗦𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗳 
↳ Many organizations treat succession planning as an annual paperwork exercise. When leaders leave suddenly, the "plan" is outdated or irrelevant. Succession must be a living process, reviewed and adapted continuously.
 
The Bottom Line: Leadership development fails when it's a checkbox exercise. To succeed, HR must create capability-driven, inclusive, and measurable programs that prepare leaders for today's challenges and tomorrow's opportunities.
 
If this resonates with you, repost it to help other HR leaders build better leadership pipelines. ♻️
 
Follow Ricardo Cuellar for more HR strategy, leadership development, and career growth.

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