Published by REB Online:
Succession planning is often overlooked when business owners are devising their strategy for success. It can feel antithetical to the goal of building a strong company to simultaneously plan for its end — or the end of your role within it. Yet according to one agency head, succession planning is essential to running a well-oiled team.
Paul Davies, CEO and founder of One Agency, wants the businesses under his banner to make a commitment to in-built succession planning.
“As we go into business ownership for all sorts of personal reasons and motivations, likewise, we exit the business for a myriad of reasons. Hopefully, the exit is a graceful one made on our terms when we’re good and ready. However, we’ve all heard sad stories about colleagues and others that have sudden health crises, accidents, crippling divorces, or other totally unexpected and unforeseen experiences that have hugely significant impacts on their capacity to continue trading,” Mr Davies explained.
It’s his hope that fostering open and honest conversation about these realities can ensure that business owners are never left in a tight spot, and that it might help retain and foster the talents of emerging leaders coming up in their careers.
“I consider having an exit strategy an important part of any businesses’ issues, risk, and crisis management,” Mr Davies said.
“Timelines must be considered a fair way out to avoid panic on a personal level and undue disruption on an office level. Don’t wait for a crisis (personal or professional) to happen,” he warned.
Moreover, Mr Davies noted that it’s important to understand what legal requirements and commitments you’ve taken on, particularly with your brand’s head office, and any office lease terms you might be liable for so that you can time any changes correctly — whether that’s winding your business down or transferring it to other hands.
“Identify your preferred exit; is it to scale back until you have just a rent roll to sell? Is there a family member or younger business partner that may be an obvious successor? If not, then consideration must be given to other potential avenues. Whether that’s to look for someone new to bring into your business,” Mr Davies noted.
There are a few key skills that he’s been able to identify over the years that make for good leadership potential.