Succession: Passing the Baton of Leadership
 By
Henry D. Landes
October 1999
Succession. Passing the baton of leadership. Talk about a "loaded"
subject. In most business families, the question isn’t whether
a son or daughter succeeds the company founder. The question is
HOW that person succeeds the founder/entrepreneur. Part of the answer
to the question is enmeshed in the delicate but profound process
of mentoring the candidate for leadership. In the early years of
a son or daughter’s career in the family business, time and
energy go to mastering skills and meeting objectives. These are
the "doing" years. They’re important, but only part
of the job description and career path for an eventual CEO in a
family business. The chasm between the "doing" years and
the more critical "leading" years can be fraught with
mystery, doubt, fear, and anxiety. In order to slay these dragons
that can scuttle the best of family businesses, many companies turn
to mentors. Mentoring of one kind or another will happen anyway.
The goal is that mentoring be deliberate, specific, planned, and
a mutually enriching experience for both mentor and mentee. Easier
said than done.
Several issues present themselves. Who is the best mentor? How
long should the mentoring relationship last? What is it, exactly,
that the mentor is seeking to impart to the mentee? If not the parent
as mentor, then who? Do you turn to another non-family senior executive?
If the mentor is a non-parent senior executive, how do you avoid
a sense of competition? Do you employ an outside consultant to do
the mentoring? What’s the best age spread between mentor and
mentee? These questions just scratch the surface.
Most agree that the ultimate goal of the mentoring process is
to develop the next generation of leadership. The mentoring period
is a slow, thoughtful transition from doing to leading, from achieving
to visioning. The process demands structure and measurable goals.
But, more than these, the process must be grounded in mutual respect.
Serving as a mentor is among the most challenging and rewarding
services our firm provides clients. Nothing is more personal. No
aspect of the business family life cycle should be more personal
than the issues surrounding succession. Sometimes aspects of the
process are so difficult for a parent that an outside consulting
mentor is the wisest way to proceed.
There’s little doubt that the family mentor conveys the
company’s oral history, traditions, and vision better than
someone outside the company. But, it isn’t unusual for an
outside mentor to have more success than an insider teaching critical
leadership skills, interpersonal skills, and management-level decision-making.
A well-mentored heir can make the difference in a business family’s
success from one generation to the next.
We each have our styles of teaching what’s important in
our business. Some of us are better as role models. Others prefer
a "shadow" who watches and learns from the "old man’s"
every move and vocal inflection. Still others teach by assigning
ever more demanding responsibilities with the accompanying control,
rewards, and accountability. Regardless of the style, the mentoring
process needs to be as individual and special as the parties involved
and the company of which they’re apart.
At the Delaware Valley Family Business Center we recognize the
trust required in the mentoring relationship and have succeeded
in serving many business families in shaping the next generation
of leadership talent for the decisions ahead. If this is an aspect
of the succession process in your company that’s keeping you
awake nights, give us a call. We can likely help put the concern
to rest.
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