Three Actions to Align for Succession Success By Dr. Mark L. Vincent  

Maestro-level Leaders Align with All Three

Perhaps we could align on an alternative title for this blog post: “Whip or slingshot?”  Read on to see how you are braiding a metaphorical cord. Which one depends on you.

Where We Can Align

There are two outcomes most leaders desire for their successful succession.

• An organization that will endure beyond the leaders ‘ stewardship.
• A ready successor is available when needed.

If the organization is not operationally mature, then the outgoing executive and board are wise to consider a strategic interim before any new executive begins.

The Interim Option

I’ve led fifteen interims and have guided the design and implementation of as many others. Several colleagues have gone even deeper in this field, and we compare notes regularly.

• When first diving into an interim scenario, here is what we listen for: there is an outgoing executive who does not let go.

Their ongoing, often well-intentioned desire to help becomes a parallel guerrilla process.

• Potential or precious successors who want the role but do not grasp the mission.

Their desire to hold the top seat drives their decisions more than the organizational mission does.

• A board that chooses expedience rather than thoroughness when naming a successor.

The organization is governed to fill a vacancy rather than to advance its mission and remain within its declared values.

A Disastrous Trifecta

More often than not, all three of these—a disastrous trifecta—have already caused damage, which means the strategic interim role becomes one of triage and staging a rescue. Hence, the enterprise has a chance to endure under new leadership.

And just as often—in addition to all three of the above intertwining to form a braided whip that flays the organization and its people—there are no proper measures of organizational performance. KPIs or OKRs with related organizational dashboards, if they exist, are woefully out of date, measure what cannot be controlled, or measure so many aspects of everything that they end up measuring nothing.

The Strategic Alternative

Let’s flip now to describe the Maestro-level leader who wants to set up successors for success, without a rescuing interim period serving as a buffer. Here, alignment is most essential.

1. They must develop a specific plan (strategy) for letting go and then adhere to it. This includes creating a life beyond their current role. Their integrity and reputation are on the line here.
2. Any successor will need to have demonstrated enterprise-wide, executive-level thinking, especially for the specific organization they will lead. Having done it elsewhere is no guarantee they will do it here and now.
3. They must tailor the succession process to the specific organization. Yes, consult the best practices, but prepare to build on them to vet and prepare any successor for the organization’s mission and its current and anticipated context.

The above, when combined with tuned-up operational metrics, braids the cord for the whole organization to slingshot successors into the future and slay the proverbial giants they will face.

When a slingshot is braided rather than a whip, a Maestro-level leader becomes their own strategic interim. Executive Advisors get to cheer them on rather than stepping in to clean up and try to revive the dream after the damage is done.

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Dr. Mark L. Vincent is the Founder of Design Group International and the Society for Process Consulting. He hosts the Third Turn Podcast and facilitates Maestro-level leaders. Discover the Maestro-level cohort that is waiting for you! Click the banner below to learn more!

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