The Christmas tree is up. The outdoor lights are hung around the garage, over the front door and on the trees in the yard. Everything is in position for the holiday season. Yes, it’s that time of year—December is upon us, and it’s time to recap the year that was and look forward to 2019.
At this time of the year, many organizations are in the planning process and are looking at what they need to accomplish in the coming year and during the years ahead.
Looking forward as a company can bring an uneasy feeling about whether key members of the leadership team and perhaps one level below this team have the competency to make it happen. As businesses change, often the same leader that was successful five years ago may not be the right leader today. Most leaders feel very uncomfortable when they have this sense and avoid making changes.
Too many leaders feel uncertain about making changes to their leadership team. Uncertainty can keep companies from making the changes they need in a timely manner. Here are some questions to ask to make sure your leadership team and the team just below them are positioned for the future.
• What Skills/Experience Are We Lacking?
• Can We Attract the Right Talent Economically?
• Will Making a Move Now Negatively Influence Our Team/Culture?
• Will We Be Worse Off Making a Move Now Because of the Time To Find A Replacement?
As part of our process, M&A Executive Search works with clients on a confidential basis to help them clearly define the needed competencies and to assess their current team relative to available and affordable talent. There are typically opportunities to move professionals in the wrong seats into different roles where both the company and professional are better off.
M&A helps clients with various strategies for replacing a member of the team without sacrificing progress on key initiatives. For example, we have often leveraged our Interim/Project Consulting resources to fill key positions immediately on an interim or project basis while conducting a more comprehensive search avoiding a gap in focus and effort.
