Who Is Your Next-In-Line?

Who is your next in-line? It’s a very different question than "who is your next-in-command?".

Your next in command, or “2IC”, is the person that is in charge when you are away, out of the office, or on vacation. Every large organization has an org chart that lays this out clearly, and every small organization has a clear understanding of who’s in charge when the boss is away.

But who is next in line when the owner or primary entrepreneurial business leader passes the baton? Has that person been defined, and is that person capable? Does he or she have what it takes to be not just the keeper of the vision and protector of the values, but the definer and perpetuator of them as well?

Companies today spend a lot of time, energy and resources, developing their next generation people to serve well in 2^nd in command roles, and to fill those positions better than the founders or people currently in place do. This is admirable, and indeed wise.

But what is often forgotten is that the skills of the founder or current business leader wasn’t learned through a course or training program, they were learned through the actual experience of following an inner compass and navigating through unmapped and undefined situations. In other words, there is no one in line to fill the entrepreneurial gap when the current leader passes the torch. And it is a big and crucial gap not easily filled.

Recently, I had the pleasure and privilege of helping coach and mentor someone hand picked for the “next in line” position. This individual wasn’t tapped on the shoulder to lead the entire company some time in the future; he was given the opportunity to lead a new business unit from scratch. The current CEO still had plenty of gas in the tank and plenty of rubber on the tires and he had grown his company successfully with many capable 2^nd-in-command people in all the key roles. But what became evident to me after working with this company in various situations was that he alone seemed to have the broader view and deeper gaze into the vision to be able to lead his team of skilled and capable 2^nd-in-command leaders.

And I believe he was insightful and wise enough to realize that himself.

When he spun the new business unit off into a separate, free-standing company, he picked someone that he recognized as having natural entrepreneurial talent, and he asked me to help coach and mentor that person. He had previously given this individual a crucial project to handle from end to end, as a bit of a test to see if entrepreneurial skills and tendencies emerged. And they did. (But the CEO still had his plate full with the parent company, plus a lot of other things high achieving people tend to get involved with, and that's why he asked me to help).

I was flattered and thrilled to have had the opportunity to walk beside this young entrepreneurial leader for the next 9 months and pleased to see him fully embrace and thrive in the opportunity. In my mind, the risks involved with giving entrepreneurial talent the opportunity to make decisions, plot courses and perhaps take a few new paths is a lot smaller than not doing so and not having someone capable and ready of being your next in line.  

Hiring an entrepreneurial coach, as just described, is just one approach, but there are others. As well as working one-on-one with emerging leaders, I also have the privilege of chairing a couple chapters of Innovators Alliance, a peer-to-peer network for seasoned CEOs and founders of Ontario based companies (www.innovators.org). By its nature, the organization encourages CEOs and founders to continually foster the spirit of entrepreneurism in their companies and even has peer-to-peer chapters set up exclusively for the people that are being groomed to potentially be next-in-line.

A couple weeks ago, I had the distinct pleasure of sharing with the current cohort from the Ivey School of Business’s Executive MBA program and got a chance to experience what happens when a whole group of talented and aspiring entrepreneurial leaders get together. There is talent, energy, and a lot of desire.

There are a lot of opportunities to be developing the next leader of your company, but current leaders must be intentional about it and can’t wait until they are on their last few laps. Sooner is better than later.

Most CEOs and founders I speak with can quickly identify who’s next in command, but “who’s next in line to lead and grow your company?” is often a far tougher question for them to answer. It’s something to think about – and be intentional about.

For more on the topic, check out www.innovators.org and Should You Hire an Entrepreneurial Coach?