executive transition

Smart Planning for Executive Transitions: When Time Is Not On Your Side (Part 2)

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This is the second part of our two-part series on executive transitions. If you missed the first one, you can read some tips for handling a planned executive transition here.

Transitions are high stakes for both companies and investors. It’s emotional, especially if an organization has seen a lot of executive turnover in a short time. In fact, 70% of CEOs and managers—i.e., people leaders—are considering quitting. Experts suggest that emotional burnout, the stress of the pandemic, and the shifting labor market and economy are all likely contributing to this trend. 

Executive turnover brings up a variety of reactions. While some employees get very anxious about having to manage or “break in” the new leader, others—like those who were “quiet quitting” before it was a thing–check out entirely. Neither extreme is healthy for individuals or companies.

In Part 2 of our Executive Transition Series, we’ll consider a situation that’s a bit different than the planned exit of a long-term CEO. 

Imagine it’s three years into the pandemic, and your current leader, who has been with the company for two years, has admirably faced the challenges the pandemic brought to all organizations. Although she has managed quite well, another opportunity comes up and she submits her two weeks’ notice.

Without a transition plan in place, the company could be thrown into chaos. Some employees may have come to the company only to work with her, and others might be suspicious of how leaders are going to handle the change, or whether the company has a future at all. Executive  transitions are emotional and complex, and the fact is that there isn’t always time to prepare.

In a case like this, context will drive a strategic communications plan. What’s the context around the exiting CEO? What is the plan for the interim leader? Are we looking internally or externally? Most importantly, how do we set up a new leader for success and demonstrate stability to our employees?

4 Tips for Unplanned Transitions

 1. Storytelling

 This tops our list again because storytelling is how humans best connect and communicate. That doesn’t mean telling fairytales—employees can tell when a communication is bullsh*t or hiding the truth. It is important, as much as is professionally appropriate, to be honest about why change is coming. 

Tell the truth and allow room for employees to both have and share their thoughts and feelings about what’s happening. You’d be surprised at how much it helps to have leadership acknowledge that a particular situation is really challenging. Otherwise, you risk making employees feel as if they’re being gaslighted. Transitions are inherently challenging, and employees need to know they’re not alone in feeling it.

2. Due diligence

You’ve made space for the feelings, and now it’s time to do your due diligence. This has two parts: finding your next leader, and continuing to achieve your goals.

Finding a new leader will be your utmost priority. Most likely, your Board of Directors will take the lead to determine an interim leader and initiate a search for the next leader. You’ll need to announce and introduce the interim leader while also giving employees, customers, and partners a sense for the plan to find your new executive.

Finally, you want to help your team keep their eyes on the prize, whether that’s increasing sales or another goal for this quarter. Transition can be a major distraction. While it’s okay to acknowledge feelings of uncertainty, it’s also important to support your team in moving forward. 

As the saying goes, companies are bigger than one person; success is shared vision and collective action. By providing the right support, you can empower your team to keep pursuing the strategy. This will not only help maintain a sense of stability and continuity, but it also ensures you avoid larger business problems if performance falls off.  

 3. Fact finding

This is related to storytelling, but it’s different because this is not just about providing employees with a narrative that they can understand. It’s also about addressing any unanswered questions that may surround the circumstances of the exiting CEO and the changes that are coming.

People should be able to ask questions and feel they’re being heard. They should be able to say, “you’re the third CEO in three years, why should we trust that you’ll stay?” The sooner you get it all out there, the sooner you can move on. 

If you don’t answer the questions your employees have, they will fill in the blanks. It is better to be transparent and to provide honest answers to the difficult questions. Sometimes the honest answer is, “we don’t know yet” or “we’re still looking into it.” That’s okay. Better to be honest and give a sense for what you expect to be a timeline to an answer. This will build trust and, if done well, help with employee retention. 

4. Introducing New Leadership

As with planned transitions, employees want to know who the new leader is. In an unplanned transition, and especially a fast one, there might be more skepticism and suspicion. Being as transparent as possible about the new leader’s background and vision are crucial. What’s her background? Does she prefer to hire from specific universities? What’s her vision for the next five or ten years? 

Offer employees a variety of opportunities to talk with and about the incoming leader, and keep in mind that everyone has different levels of comfort with asking questions. Consider holding “Donut Wednesdays,” fireside chats, and other informal channels where leadership and teams can connect. You might also offer webinars where more introverted employees can submit questions virtually. As much as you can, provide ample time and spaces for teams to have conversations with transitioning executives as well.

The Need for Strategy

 Executive transitions—whether planned or unplanned—require strategy and careful planning. Storytelling, transparency, and diligence can help ease the growing pains of your company. However, it’s important to note that there are important and subtle differences in strategy for planned and unplanned transitions. 

For instance, employees are far more likely to feel insecure about their job and the future of the company amidst an unplanned transition. And without careful communication, rumors are more likely to distract from workplace goals. Honesty, diligence, and insight into company culture and employee needs are key for maintaining normalcy and retaining your valued employees.

 In all cases, I recommend you use a variety of channels and venues to soothe your most anxious employee and to engage your most checked out employee. Hold fireside chats, host Q&A sessions, send email updates from the hiring team, and create spaces for leadership to connect with their teams.

 Transitions can be chaotic, but they can also be opportunities to engage employees, customers and partners. A smart executive transition can open up a gold mine of insight into how these stakeholder sets are feeling about the company more generally. With the right support, you can use the transition as an opportunity to zero in on your systems and communications. If you’re willing to be present with the process, the results can be better than you ever imagined.

Want an experienced set of eyes to help guide your executive transition plan, or don’t know where to begin? Audacia can help. Reach out to us for a consultation here.

Photo credit: Young Businesswoman Receiving Praise From Her Colleagues During A Meeting In A Modern Office by Jacob Lund Photography from NounProject.com

executive transition

Smart Planning for Executive Transitions: When You See It Coming (Part 1)

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Transitions, including executive transitions, are high stakes for companies for obvious reasons. They bring about logistical, bureaucratic, professional, and emotional challenges for everyone involved. That’s why we’ve created a two-part Executive Transition Series to help you out during seasons of change in your company. 

Executives can be a powerful retention mechanism, or the reason people leave. Consider the old adage, people quit bosses, not jobs. Alternatively, sometimes employees come to a company to work with a particular leader. What happens when that leader leaves? And what about when veteran employees have worked with the same leader for multiple years, and a new leader radically changes the culture? These are tough questions, and not ones you can sweep under the rug.

The key for dealing with executive transitions is communication. It’s important to tailor your strategy to the kind of transition you’re facing. On the one hand, you might be facing a planned transition—one that’s been on the horizon for months or years. On the other hand, you might have a leader—maybe one who hasn’t even been around very long—give two weeks notice. These are two very different situations, and having a strategic communications plan can help you make it through either one.

In this two-part series, we’ll consider both situations. First, we’ll consider some tips for handling a planned transition.

4 Tips for Planned Transitions

Executive transition is a specialty of ours here at Audacia Strategies. Let me share one of my favorite engagements and biggest client wins when supporting a client through a planned transition. Recently, Audacia was brought on board to help with an executive transition in a software company. The outgoing senior executive was the founder of the company and also an avid, talented guitarist. A low key rockstar, if you will. The company culture was centered around music: leadership documents were full of music analogies, guitars were given as gifts, leaders put their favorite song in their website bio–you get the picture.

The leader planned his exit and helped to identify a new CEO. The new CEO was brilliant—he had run billion-dollar organizations and grew up playing chess blind-folded! While this new CEO was a great fit to guide the company to its next phase of growth, he was different from the founder-CEO. An executive transition is one thing, but the reality is that the company was also about to undergo a cultural transition.

How do you manage the exit in a case like this? Here’s the playbook we advised.

1. Storytelling

As long as people have been around, they have connected over stories. We made space for the outgoing CEO to share his story, and time to celebrate his work with the company. Just like a graduation or retirement party, this allows for closure and creates appropriate professional space for processing the (big) feelings that come with transitions.

 2. Getting to know the new leader

 In addition to telling the story of the outgoing CEO’s time, we worked with the incoming CEO to help him identify and share his story. This humanized an ultra-smart leader and gave employees a chance to get to know him and understand his priorities and what makes him tick. 

We also advised on creating plenty of opportunities and multiple channels to engage with the CEO and ask questions. Unanswered questions can leave employees feeling ungrounded and many may be too intimidated to ask the hard (or even simple!) questions. 

We always advise to be as open as possible and provide opportunities for interaction in multiple formats (in-person, online, large group, small group, 1-to-1). Transparency and accessibility are key for maintaining and building trust.

3. Working with the team

The logistics and bureaucracy involved in a transition are not to be underestimated; however, it’s also important to work closely with the team. Share the transition plan, let your executive team know what is coming and let them weigh in on what they and their teams need. And, practically speaking, set expectations about which responsibilities will be redistributed, who will be responsible for training whom, and so on. Executives have questions too–give them time to process the transition and bring their questions to the new executives or trusted confidants. 

4. Mind your communications

We trade a lot in written word, scripts, and talking points. Emails and other written messages are important artifacts that preserve institutional memory long after the transition. Because everyone can look back and see where leaders followed through and where they didn’t, it’s important to be consistent across multiple mediums (video intros of a new CEO, webcast town hall, in-person meet and greets, welcome letter, and so on). 

Perhaps even more importantly, organizations should make sure messaging is consistent across informal communications as well. During times of transition, employees will first bring their worries and questions to direct supervisors and peers. The executive team and their team needs to be on the same page so they’re ready to help their teams navigate organizational changes. During times change most employees and customers will turn to their line manager or customer success contact for reassurance, make sure these critical team members have the information, resources, and support they need to succeed.  

Concluding Thoughts

 Planned transitions are admittedly easier than unplanned transitions; however, planned transitions can still be destabilizing to company culture. At worst, transitions can result in employee turnover, loss of trust, lost business momentum, and a decline in workplace climate if you don’t go in with a strategy. It’s important to keep in mind both the emotional and logistical challenges of executive transitions.

We often think about corporations as faceless entities, but in moments of transition, we are reminded that corporations are made up of people who have hearts and minds. The more you share your story honestly, transparently, and thoughtfully, the more you can weather this season of transition while building long-term trust and continuing to achieve your company goals.

If you don’t have the luxury of a planned transition and are facing an imminent unplanned transition, read the next part of our two-part series where we’ll discuss tips for handling an unplanned executive transition.

If you’re facing a transition—planned or unplanned—and you’re trying to find the right strategy, Audacia has you covered. Reach out to us here to schedule a consultation.

Photo Credit: Black Male And White Female Business Associates Shaking Hands In Hallway by Flamingo Images from NounProject.com

c-suite change

C-suite Change Can Be Energizing or Panic-Inducing. The Choice is Yours

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Does this sound familiar? Your organization is one of the bright, rising stars in your industry. It has taken years of hard work, but you’ve finally reached a point where you have strong leadership across the board, a steady vision for the future, and everyone from the executive team down to the employees on the frontlines are working together like a well-oiled machine.

And then…the CEO turns in their resignation letter. Does the prospect of C-suite change send a shock wave of panic through the company? Or are you ready to guide everyone through a smooth transition?

If your initial response is panic, that’s okay. This is the perfect time (i.e., before this scenario becomes your reality) to come up with a plan. Let’s look at how you can reframe c-suite change as an opportunity rather than a potentially destabilizing event.

Revisit Company Culture for Successful C-Suite Change

First, recognize that C-suite change is a natural part of company evolution. The person you had steering the ship during the start-up phase may not be the best person to lead you through the next stage and beyond. Thinking about how far you’ve come and how your culture has evolved will help you choose the right CEO for this next phase.

Also, if you’re moving from a founder as CEO to a new corporate executive, you’ll want to consider how much of the company culture is tied up with the founder’s personality and whether that makes sense going forward.

For example, suppose your Founder and CEO is a literal rockstar. He plays the guitar and performs regularly with his semi-famous band. He has even been interviewed by Rolling Stone. It’s an interesting draw and has given the marketing team lots of fun campaign ideas. But is this crucial to the DNA of the organization? In other words, is it critical that the new CEO also play the guitar?

Maybe. Maybe not. The point is that you need to figure out what is part of the DNA of your organization and look for a new CEO that shares the same values — someone for whom your culture is authentic to who they are as a leader.

Why is culture so important when considering C-suite change? Well, it’s likely that culture is one big reason that scaling and reaching the point where everyone is working together like a well-oiled machine has happened. So as you consider the selection and managing of the C-suite change for customers, investors, and employees, keeping the culture consistent should be your first priority. 

How to Keep Company Culture Consistent:

Once you begin to see your CEO’s resignation as part of the evolution of the organization, you can turn your attention to deciding, likely with the help of your board, what is crucial to the company’s DNA. Take your time here because decisions about how to separate the former CEO from the company culture will determine whether stakeholders perceive the C-suite change as energizing or destabilizing.

Keep the following tips in mind:

1. Have a good sense of the culture as seen through the eyes of employees. 

Find a way to take the pulse of your employees. One good approach is to use an external team to conduct Voice of the Employee interviews. You may be surprised that what you think of as crucial to the culture of your firm is really hidden from your employees and vice versa. So this kind of research is hugely beneficial for smooth executive transitions.

It’s also important to announce the transition itself to employees at the same time as you announce the C-suite change publicly. If you announce internally and externally at different times, rumors will fly and rumors are a huge source of instability during big transitions.

We recommend having a specific employee communication plan to address key cultural issues and how the C-suite change will affect the organization from a macro perspective. Also, as soon as possible, set up a town hall meeting where employees can be formally introduced to the new CEO and have their questions and concerns addressed.

2. Ground everyone back into the company strategy.

While the CEO may be changing, the company strategy is staying the same, especially if we’re sticking with the scenario where everything is going well and the CEO needs to move on. This means it’s a good opportunity to go back to basics. 

Let your mission, vision, and values drive you forward. Get everyone to recommit to company fundamentals and talk openly about what is changing and what will be staying the same.

3. Be as honest and transparent as possible.

This third recommendation is a big one, so strap in. As soon as your executive gives you notice that they’re even thinking about moving on, you want to have a strategy in place. This will allow you to be as honest and transparent as possible. This goes for all of your key leadership, not just your CEO.

Perhaps you will want to call a board meeting to open discussions about all of the topics above. Perhaps you’ll want to make an announcement (internally and externally) early and reassure everyone that the transition period will last several months. Whatever your first move, having a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) around C-suite change is a smart idea.

In a previous blog article, we talked about the elements that plan should include whether your C-suite change is expected or unexpected.

4. Know your game clock.

Timing is also important here. The more you can be in control of the timeline, the greater your ability to control the message of the transition. Unexpected changes can raise questions about the stability of an organization. One way to ease these concerns is to share (at a high level)  your succession planning process with key stakeholders so that they understand the corporate calculus behind the leadership selection. 

For public companies: if you have a planned transition with a good amount of lead time, it’s good to make this announcement as part of your quarterly reporting cadence. If the transition is unexpected, public companies will likely have to disclose the leadership change via an 8-K within four business days, but make sure to consult with legal counsel to determine your specific disclosure requirements.

5. Teamwork makes the dream work.

If possible, make time in your transition strategy to allow the outgoing and incoming CEOs to work together. If appropriate, having a “pass the torch moment” can be a critical element to  transferring credibility and trust from the outgoing CEO to the incoming CEO. Part of this strategy should include coordinating their narrative. As an example, the outgoing CEO may talk about why they built the company and why the new CEO is the right person to carry the mantle forward. This gives the new CEO the opportunity to share their own vision about the future of the company.

Finally, make sure your new executive is prepared to take over. Is the new executive on the same page when it comes to the company culture? Have you defined your key messages? Have you acknowledged that C-suite change requires an acclimation period that can take at least 30 days? Have you organized listening sessions and key meetings with stakeholders? Do you have a comprehensive introduction strategy?

For our private equity-backed companies: if your CEO has experience with public company boards and they will be transitioning to working with your private equity board, do they understand what that entails? This is a helpful resource to share from McKinsey. 

C-suite change can be a powerful signal of an organization’s evolution. If you’re ready to move into the next phase of your company’s metamorphosis, our team can help make the transition energizing instead of panic-inducing. Let’s talk about your next business transformation!

Photo credit: Jacob Lund Photography from NounProject.com

executive transition

Executive Transition Part II: Preparing Your Executive

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If you missed part I of our series on executive transition, click here to read more about how to prepare for planned or unplanned c-suite changes.

Last time, we discussed how to prepare your organization for an executive transition. Because stakeholders watch these types of big transformations carefully for any signs, positive or negative, of what the future will bring, it is crucial to take the necessary steps to get everyone on the same page.

By far, the most important element of a successful c-suite transition is properly preparing your executive. This is where investor relations officers and communicators really earn their keep. Both roles play a critical role in supporting and enabling a successful executive transition.

Prepare to prepare your new executive.

First, take some time to gather key resources to help your new executive transition smoothly. For instance, create a portfolio including the most recent corporate overview, key messaging statements, shareholder overview, previous public statements, an analysis of the competitive landscape, key events/timing, etc.

Next, before you begin strategizing, put yourself in the shoes of your new executive. Ask yourself and your team crucial questions, for example: Is the new leader, whether interim or permanent, an internal hire or will she need to be brought up to speed on your organization’s culture?

Keep in mind that while the new executive may have been brought on to accomplish specific goals, the more she knows about the organization as a whole, the better able she will be to accomplish these specific goals. So, don’t be afraid to ask the new executive what support she needs from you during this transition period.

Answers to these questions will help you better enable your new executive to smoothly enter her new role. Once you’ve asked and answered these critical questions, you can now put yourself in the shoes of your key stakeholder groups and begin the hard work of prepping your executive for the transition:

1. Define key messages.

As discussed last week, executive transition = risk. Our communications goal throughout this process is to make the change appear less risky, insofar as possible. An orderly transition will give investors, employees, and customers confidence that the company, whether public or non-public, is in control of the transition.

What does this look like in practice? It means, at a minimum, defining key messages around the following: (a) any insight you can provide into the reasons for the change, (b) why the new executive is the right hire at the right time, and (c) reinforcement of key company strategic messages.

(a) Why did the previous C-suite executive leave?

Present a clear rationale for the change, whether it was by choice or not. That said, word choice in describing the transition is absolutely important. Aim for language that is natural, concise, and respectful to all transitioning parties.

Keep in mind that communications during this time can be a delicate balancing act between signaling Board control over the transition, legal sensitivities, and acknowledging organization strategy. So, be prepared for (and even welcome) multiple perspectives as this verbiage works through internal approval processes.

Even under the best of circumstances, there will be speculation about why the previous executive left. This makes it even more important to ensure that lines of communication are clear. Transparency will ensure that the company isn’t perceived as holding back information from stakeholders.

Whatever words you choose, be sure to avoid anything that makes transition communications appear confusing or bitter, as this can stoke speculation, spook investors and employees, and make for a generally unproductive business environment.

(b) Why is the new executive the right hire at the right time?

It’s important to have a clear message about why the new c-suite executive is the right man or woman to take on the job. Discuss the strategic criteria for this hire. What differentiates your executive from his or her peers? Leverage any previous experience leading similar organizations or leading through similar market changes.

Especially if this transition was unexpected, anything you can say to emphasize that your new executive has been preparing to step into this ideal position at this moment, is helpful. Don’t be afraid to think big here. Talk to your Board and your new executive about his vision for the future of the company and find creative ways to work that into your messaging.

(c) How does this support the company’s strategy?

Finally, make sure to re-emphasize the company strategy. This applies whether the overall strategy is changing (e.g., because the previous CEO was fired due to poor performance in shifting market conditions) or the basic strategy is staying the same, while the new leader is free to make small tweaks to business operations.

Either way, it’s a good time to revisit the corporate vision and mission to remind stakeholders that the fundamentals will remain solid through this period of transition. Bonus points for showing how the new executive has demonstrated strengths in key strategic areas.

2. Allow for acclimation.

To the extent possible, give your executive some time to get her feet on the ground and learn more about how the organization runs. Most executives will want at least a 30-day transition period. However, depending on the business circumstances this is not always possible. It’s best to be upfront with your executive about the timeframe from the beginning.

At the very least, be sure to carve out time before key meetings with employees, investors, and customers to prepare. Discuss the stakeholder group personalities, hot buttons, previous conversations/promises/expectations, and the competitive environment.

3. Consider key prep strategies.

Initial interactions with key stakeholders should reflect: (a) reasons the executive chose your organization and (b) assurance that the early stages will be about listening to key stakeholders to best understand their view and expectations for the organization.

If possible, it is a great idea to organize listening sessions with stakeholder groups during this transitional period. These sessions, can provide your executive with the opportunity to hear directly from employees, top shareholders, and key customers and get them out of the “headquarters bubble.” It can also demonstrate that the company is committed to listening to diverse perspectives during this time of transition.

If your company is public, it’s crucial to prep your new executive on RegFD, especially your firm’s policies regarding RegFD and the quiet period. Make certain that your executive is prepped to handle impromptu questions (in the elevator, at a conference, etc.) by returning to their key message of why he took the job and his commitment to listening to stakeholders for the first 30-60 days.

Along these lines, roleplay likely Q&A with key stakeholder groups. Remind your executive that it’s better to stick to what she knows even if it means not fully answering the question, than going off-script and saying something inaccurate.

As much as you aim to control communications, though, there will be questions, calls, emails sent to IR, CEO, CFO, CCO, anyone who can be reached. Make sure that appropriate communications roles are established and shared. Generally speaking, it is safest to have all questions routed to media relations and investor relations. From there, you can assess and engage your executive as appropriate.

4. Consider your best public introduction strategy.

Is an industry-specific trade show or other important event coming up? This might offer a good opportunity to introduce your new executive in a lower key environment and have key customer or partner intro meetings. These types of events are also good opportunities to conduct initial media interviews.

Do you need more time for your executive to get her feet on the ground? Discuss and agree on a timeframe to set market expectations. Then make sure this information is broadly communicated to key channels through press releases, 8-Ks, internal messaging, etc.

For example, you might include a sentence in an employee update that says, “Jane Doe expects to be meeting with our key customer accounts over the next 30 days and will visit our major employee population centers over the next 90 days.” When speaking to external stakeholders, set expectations with a comment such as, “John Doe will participate in XYZ conference/earnings call/investor day/etc. during the next few months.”

When it comes to ushering in a successful executive transition, there are several moving parts to keep in mind. As complicated as executive transitions can be, they are also exciting times for companies.

It definitely pays to think through your strategy and prepare your executive. Audacia Strategies can help make your executive transition as smooth as possible. We’d love to work with your team to develop the right strategy and outreach plan. Contact us to get started!

Photo credit: racorn / 123RF Stock Photo

Executive Transition - Handshake

Executive Transition Part I: Planning is Not Optional

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Stakeholders can learn a lot from watching an organization go through executive transition. Handled well, c-suite transitions impart confidence in the organization and its future direction. Handled poorly, leadership changes can alert investors to bigger issues within the organization, whether material or merely perceived.

The c-suite (i.e., CEO/CFO, for our purposes today) is the public face of an organization. According to the 2015 Edelman Trust Barometer, an annual study on global trust and credibility, 43% of people say that they trust the CEO as the spokesperson of the company.

Executives embody the credibility of the company. There is a good reason transition of these key leadership roles is watched so closely: as the c-suite goes, so goes the health of a corporation.

In Part I of this two-part series, we’ll talk about the planning and announcement of an executive transition. Stay tuned for Part II when we’ll discuss how to prep your new executive for primetime.

Executive Transition = Financial Risk

We all know there could be any number of perfectly benign reasons for an executive to choose to leave a particular company, knowing this doesn’t make an executive transition any less of a risk in the eyes of stakeholders.

While you may feel energized by the winds of change blowing through your organization, from the perspective of an investor or a customer, a change in leadership introduces an unknown variable, which is just a different way of saying financial risk.

When the current CEO is performing well, there are questions about whether her successor will be able to maintain the momentum. When the current CEO Is performing poorly, there are questions about how quickly her successor might be able to turn things around.

A leadership change can also be unsettling to employees, since the CEO is the cultural leader of an organization. So transitions also raise questions about the cost to organizations in terms of human capital.

Since all eyes are on you, c-suite transitions are really make or break. It’s so important for these types of big changes to be planned and carefully orchestrated. Okay, let’s talk strategy!

2 Types of Transitions: Planned and Unplanned

There are really just two types of c-suite transitions: planned and unplanned. You should have a plan either way! (Now is probably a good time to review my recent post on Crisis Management.)

There are unique challenges associated with each type, but with the right transition strategy in place, you will be equipped to manage unfolding events as much as possible.

1. Planned Executive Transitions.

If you have the luxury of knowing that a c-suite transition will take place, make sure you have a plan to communicate and acclimate external stakeholders (e.g., shareholders, customers), as well as employees.

While executive transition is generally viewed as a risk, there are steps you can take to minimize the risk in the eyes of investors. A well-considered transition plan indicates a healthy corporate succession plan aligned to the company’s stated strategy.

Additionally, if you have the benefit of time and a transition period of anywhere from a few weeks to a few months, it’s an opportunity to engineer a smooth hand-off between executives.

Joint meetings with current and interim leadership, as well as investors, customers, and employees are a strong signal of organizational health during transition. Consider what will infuse your audience with the most confidence.

2. Unplanned Executive Transitions

If a CEO/CFO must step down unexpectedly, be prepared. This means being ready to communicate quickly, transparently, and as completely as possible. At the very least, I recommend having the interim leader identified along with his qualifications as soon as possible and preferably simultaneous with the transition announcement.

You should also discuss the Board’s search process for a permanent leader and criteria for the next leader. Also, discuss Board strategy—particularly, if the transition is a result of the Board wishing to move in a new direction. If possible, a broad timeline for a decision will also help calm stakeholders as there will be key milestones and communications to watch.

It’s always important to communicate as much as possible, as transparently as possible. But during times of executive transition, strong communication is absolutely essential. Communications that appear to be less than forthcoming and/or light on path forward will only breed rumors and ramp up perceived risk.

Keep this quote at the forefront of your communications strategy:

“If you don’t give people information, they will make up something to fill the void.” – Carla O’Dell, Ph.D., President, American Productivity & Quality Center

There will be questions, calls, emails sent to IR, CEO, CFO, CCO, and anyone who can be reached. Make sure that appropriate communications roles are established and shared. This responsibility will generally fall to media relations and investor relations.

Don’t forget about timing

Whether your executive transition has been a long time coming or out of the blue, your communications strategy for transitions should also include strategies around timing. In corporate communications, timing really is everything.

For instance, unexpected transitions raise questions about an organization’s financial health. One way to ease this concern is to consider timing the transition announcement to coincide with a quarterly release. If such timing is impossible, reaffirm or refer to previous transition strategies with which stakeholders are familiar.

It’s also important to announce the transition to employees, simultaneous with an external release. If you announce internally and externally at different times, rumors will fly compounding concerns about who is really steering the ship.

I recommend going so far as to have a specific employee communication plan to address key cultural characteristics and how the c-suite transition will affect the organization from a big picture perspective. When your executive is up to it, set up a town hall meeting where employees can be formally introduced to the new face of the company and have their questions answered.

Next week: we dig deeper into how to prep your executive (interim or permanent) for a successful transition.

In the meantime, if your organization is gearing up for an expected or unexpected transition, Audacia Strategies is here for you. Having the right strategy in place will convert your transition into a transformation. Contact us today to set up your consultation session.

Photo credit: dotshock / 123RF Stock Photo