Who is really ready to step up?
By Sarah McGimpsey | Executive Search Director
For many years, the assumption in succession planning was relatively straightforward: the next leader would come from within. The person one rung below the top team had the experience, understood the business and had spent years proving themselves. The natural next step was to give them the opportunity to step up.
I think that assumption is becoming less reliable. Increasingly, businesses recognise that having a strong senior team does not necessarily mean they have someone ready to take responsibility for the organisation as a whole. There can be a genuine leadership gap between the two, which is often why businesses begin to consider their succession options more closely.
Sometimes the capability simply is not there yet. In other cases, individuals may be excellent functional leaders without having developed the breadth of experience, judgement or commercial perspective needed to lead the wider business. That does not diminish their value to the organisation, but stepping into an MD, COO or CEO role is a very different proposition from successfully leading a particular function or division.
When assessing whether someone is ready to make that transition, I look beyond job title and tenure to the breadth of their experience and the situations in which they have been tested. Have they operated outside their traditional area of expertise? Have they led significant change, navigated difficult trading conditions or made decisions that balance operational performance with commercial priorities? Have they demonstrated the ability to look beyond their own function and make decisions in the best interests of the business as a whole?
These experiences can tell us far more about future leadership potential than a CV alone. The skills that make someone successful in their current role are not always the same skills required at the next level, where judgement, influence and the ability to bring people with you become increasingly important.
There is also an interesting dynamic around internal succession that can sometimes be difficult for boards to acknowledge. A senior individual who has worked closely alongside the existing leadership team can become strongly associated with their current position in the organisation. They may be viewed as an excellent number two, a trusted operator or someone who works particularly well within the existing structure, but that does not necessarily mean they should remain there.
Sometimes, the very familiarity that makes someone valuable can make it harder for a board to visualise them in a different role, particularly when that role would place them above people they have previously worked alongside. This is not necessarily a question of capability. It can be a question of perception, organisational dynamics and whether the business is prepared to see that individual differently.
For candidates, this can be an equally important consideration. There comes a point when it is worth asking whether the opportunity to progress genuinely exists within an organisation, or whether others will continue to see you through the lens of the role you already perform. Recognising that distinction can be an important part of making informed decisions about your own career.
For businesses, a useful starting point is to apply the same criteria to an internal candidate that they would use for an external appointment. If you were going to the market tomorrow to appoint your next MD or CEO, what would the specification look like? Would you require experience of leading a P&L, delivering significant change or managing complex stakeholder relationships? If so, has your internal candidate had the opportunity to demonstrate those capabilities?
That does not mean someone needs to have done every aspect of the next role already. Few succession candidates will be a perfect match on day one. The question is whether there is sufficient evidence of capability, judgement and potential to make the transition successfully, and whether any remaining gaps can realistically be developed.
Effective succession planning is therefore about more than identifying who is next in line. It requires an honest assessment of the leadership capability already within the business, a clear understanding of what the organisation will need in the future and a willingness to look beyond established perceptions.
Ultimately, the question is not simply who is next in line, but who has the capability to lead what comes next.