Succession planning

What is succession planning?

Succession planning is identifying and developing people who can step into key roles when those roles open. It covers planned exits, such as a retirement, and sudden ones, such as a resignation. Some organizations keep an emergency plan for abrupt departures alongside a longer-term pool of people being prepared for larger roles. Unlike cross-training, the aim is a permanent successor.

Why it matters to a revenue leader

In a sales organization, the key roles include front-line managers and the sellers who hold the largest accounts. When one leaves without a ready successor, coverage and customer relationships both suffer while the seat sits open. Research summarized by HBR in 2016 found that many boards lacked a viable internal candidate even for the CEO role. In a PE-backed company, depth below the CRO also matters at exit, because a commercial team that depends on one or two people carries key-person risk that a buyer may price in.

A facility services platform with six branches has two branch sales managers planning to retire within three years. The VP Sales names a senior seller in each branch as a likely successor and has each one run the branch's renewal reviews for a year. When one manager retires early, the successor takes over the team within weeks.