The June 6, 2011 Wall Street Journal had an article on the five-year process to find a successor for the CEO of JP Morgan Chase. It's not an easy task to find a new leader for any company, whether a huge public corporation or a successful small business.
In small businesses, the more specific the skills needed the tougher it is to find a replacement (who usually is a buyer of the business). We hear a lot these days about exit/succession planning and for good reason. The demographics (i.e. aging population) tell us that there will be a lot of ownership change.
Those business owners who can remove themselves from the day-to-day, make their job one of leadership and management and reduce any owner product or service dependency will sell for a higher price, to a better buyer and get more cash at closing.
If you, or someone you know, is thinking of selling in the next five years, now is the time they should be formulating their strategy.
"Think of a succession plan as life insurance for a [law] firm." Rhonda Muir Esq.
