Or maybe, Choose A Great Successor! In years of working with C-Suite level employees, especially the President/CEO role, one trait of great leaders that stands out is their ability to backfill their previous position, or pick a leader in the discipline that leader once worked in.
Especially in struggling or fast-growing companies, leaders are tempted to backfill their old role or a role they once held with someone that is less expensive or more quickly brought online. To recruit and on-board the perfect fit may seem too time intensive. The resource drain to find that person and get them up to speed in the organization can be large.
Add to that the fact that the leader can always support that function when needed. For instance, an operations expert, VP Operations, is promoted to president. Finding the right candidate for VP Operations may take some time and will be a lot of work. The business has a few decent candidates, but none that is a perfect match. Besides, recruiter fees, potential relocation expense, probably a higher pay rate... It seems prudent to pick the best internal candidate and let the president support that position when needed.
Some years ago, I worked with a business that had been through some turmoil and was being hammered by an economic downturn. The new president was reluctant to dedicate resources to filling two critical roles that were filled, but not with the right person. Since the president had been in both finance and operations, he chose to delay replacing the CFO and VP Operations. Both disciplines were mostly under control but required constant support of the president. The business had an above average finance function, and above average operations function and no president.
In businesses with a leader being promoted, backfilling the old position is critical. The tendency to continue supporting an old function creates some comfort for the promoted and may distract or draw in the newly promoted to the old role. This is a time when the newly promoted leader needs to be immersed in the new role, not spending time supporting a protracted transition or a set of legacy responsibilities.
It is imperative that the business, through the senior leadership team or even advisory board guidance, ensure the replacement for the newly promoted be self-sufficient. Having a backfill that is on par or even an upgrade will help the promoted be even more successful in the new role.
Often, it is not that the business isn’t successful enough to retain the best leadership. Not retaining the best leadership is certainly a way to ensure the business isn’t successful.