Succession and Planning

Choosing a Successor
Succession is the process of transferring the leadership of the business to another person, or to the next generation. It is a process, rather than an event. For many family businesses the succession process can be fraught with many difficulties. There are many forces coming together to act against proper succession planning.

These can include the following:

Founder:

• Fear of death.
• Personal loss of identity.
• Fear of losing work activity.
• Jealousy.
• Reluctance to let go of the power.

Family:

• Reluctance of the founder to let go.
• The reluctance to discuss the future of the family beyond the lifetime of the parents.
• Fear of parental death.

Employees:

• Fear of changes with new management.
• Reluctance to establish controls.
• Reluctance to let go of personal relationships with the founder.
• Reluctance to let go of the power they hold for their areas.

4 Phas...