How to get leadership transition right — the first time

You’ve made the decision to retire. You’ve chosen a successor. Both those decisions were difficult to make, but you made them. But now comes the real hard part — actually transitioning the business to new leadership in a way that serves the new leader and the company you’ve built and nurtured over time.

And as you might imagine, it’s not as simple as sharing some operational information on a Google doc. There are a lot of factors at play — both operational and emotional, you’ll need to consider. And there’s also a lot of work to be done. That’s why as a family business consultant, I always suggest a succession period of at least five years. But let’s start with the work. Below are two major challenges of leadership transition — and two solutions that will lead to a successful succession for your business.

The Challenge: The Emotional Side of the Family Business