A succession plan should benefit the company leaders who are leaving, as well as the next generation who will continue the company’s efforts.
ConstructioNext shares the following three key components a succession plan needs to benefit current and future leaders.
- Ownership succession. Most advisory teams focus their attention on ownership, but it is the easiest part of succession planning and should be the final part addressed rather than the first.
- Management succession. Who will oversee estimating? Who will take the lead on contracts? Who will generate new leads and business? Management succession is vital.
- Leadership succession. It is important to identify a single person or small group who will be ready to lead when the time comes, guiding the business strategy and serving the company with its mission and vision at the forefront.
The succession process likely will be ineffective without these components, but time also is important; a successful transition can take 10 years or more, so take the time to train and mentor successors and get advice from peers who have been through succession planning.
