Association Leadership - March/April 2008 - (Page 19)

cover story: succession plans outside the staff. To hire the right person with the expertise to move into the CEO position can be pretty expensive. At the very least, the director can put together a good interview plan for the board following his retirement.” After considering these issues, it’s time to document. As with any business plan, the succession plan should include some key dates, such as when a transition may begin, and any phases that can be included; when the responsibility for dayto-day operations will be transferred to successors; and when formal retirement will take place. The timing of these milestones presents the next step: beginning to train a successor. help when looking for the right person to succeed an executive, it can also be invaluable in the event of an untimely vacancy. Whether someone comes in to replace the executive or if the workload is just delegated for a time, this information can be invaluable when trying to minimize disruptions to the organization. An adjunct to this effort can be writing down all those little things that would ﬂummox an emergency successor: Who has the keys to the ofﬁce, or the combination to the safe, or the alarm codes or the number of the repairman? What other things exist only inside the director’s head? While it’s impossible to document every little bit of information a long-term staffer takes for granted, as much information as can be incorporated in the succession plan will help ensure the successor’s success. Don’t let such an exercise instill panic, though. Gallman cautions, “Don’t try to take on more than you can develop. People become frustrated when they see a full-blown succession plan and all the parts and pieces that need to be developed. Start with something that is relatively simple. One of the things we started with was basically a simulative org chart and, below each one of the segments, the managers ﬁlled in the boxes – do they have people within their staff that could ﬁll in if something happened to them tomorrow? Identify the go-to individuals and how far off they are from being developed and ready to really take over. That’s a quick step that you can use to get a quick view, and then you start developing the plans throughout on each individual.” Training the New Boss In the larger corporate world, managers are often advised to “hire their next boss,” to look beyond a new hire’s current traits and abilities to envision his future place in the organization. As VanDelinder says, it’s important to look forward – a shared vision of the mission and future of the organization, along with the skill set required to manage that mission, are key. A good place to start is to ask the current executive director and the board members to list three people who could take over the executive’s job in a crisis. This simple exercise can bring into focus where the need lies. VanDelinder adds, “Even for a CEO that’s not near retirement, in an emergency situation, if that person is out of the picture tomorrow, the board is going to be in the position to have to hire. They should know at any given time what skill set they are looking at and some information about the market value of those skills and how to go about hiring someone.” With the most important leadership skills identiﬁed and the areas of need noted, another useful part of the plan can be to document, document, document. Over and above the executive’s job description, what does she really do every day? How about weekly, monthly, quarterly and annually? Not only can this And Look Beyond the Boss With the executive director position covered, a comprehensive succession plan will next outline strategies for other key staff positions – after all, it takes a village to make an association successful. Gallman says his organization has taken a very proactive approach with its succession plan, one that involves developing people at all levels of the organization. “We have attrition and we do and will lose people, and that’s ever-present in our minds. And we look at it beyond the highest level,” he said. “We push down into the middle management to have their succession plans in place. For instance, for myself, I’m always interested in making sure that the plan is in place if I lose one of my key managers. What I want to be sure is that, on an ongoing basis, they are developing the individuals within their departments that have the capability to grow to possibly step into their shoes. We try to identify two or three potentials, and identify when they might be ready to step into that next role. We also identify if we don’t have a particular person for a position and that we will need to externally hire, and we document that as well.” Don’t Make Space on the Dusty Shelf With a strategic transition plan in place, and successors identiﬁed and mentored, it’s tempting to think the work is done. But planning a transition is an ongoing effort, subject to many revisions. With the door opened and the discussions initiated, however, adapting to changing circumstances should be simpler. Hilsabeck concludes, “I’ve actually talked to some CEOs that are fearful of bringing up the subject of succession, fearing perhaps that the board may decide to let them go earlier than they decided to. I often think that this planning is dreaded, but it should not be – it should be a healthy thing. It also should be open and disclosed, because for everything you don’t tell, someone else has to ﬁll in the blanks. To me, a good succession plan is open and it’s disclosed. And, as with any good master plan or strategic plan, the succession plan must be visited and revisited. The time to plan for succession is during good times, not under duress.” ◆ March/April 2008 | Association LEADERSHIP 19

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Association Leadership - March/April 2008

Association Leadership - March/April 2008 Contents Chairman's Column Homepage 60-Second Solutions Southwest Showcase Highlights Feature: Succession Plans Interim Executives Job Documentation Coaching: A Walk in the Park Perspectives Technology Column Association Case Study Government Affairs: Focus On Electronic Resources New Members Community Spotlight Houston Index to Advertisers Advertiser.com Board of Directors

Association Leadership - March/April 2008

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.