Succession from a founders view

This weeks question comes from John Fitzpatrick linkedin.com/in/johnfitzp

How do you deal with succession planning as a company is expanding from a start-up through the next Phase?

The takeaways for me would be:

• Don’t underestimate the difference between stepping away to exit properly and being succeeded in parts of your initial roles. This could be due to different factors size, time or skills, where someone is brought in to lead that part of the business instead of you - but where you are still around.
• The latter is harder for the founder but also for the successor and my advice would be to have as many dialogues as possible with all the people involved.
• When you finally step away as a founder apart from handing over an actual role you will leave a hole that can not be covered by a job spec or accountability list. Find the dialogue with your people and explain why you do what you do and challenge them to step up.
• You can not change someone’s personality or values but it might open their eyes to how they could contribute in their own way.