Part One: Developing the Next Generation of Leaders

What do business owners and entrepreneurs need to think about when it comes to potential shifts in the markets and long term planning? How do you take advantage of some of the shifts that have occurred recently in the marketplace? My good friend Hollis Haff, a Reverend at the New Community Church, once told me that, “Only a fool would fail to plan for the inevitable.” If something is inevitable, then why in the world wouldn’t you take the time to think it through and put together a plan? I’ve always kept this thought in mind. It has really challenged me to do some planning and to think about the things that really are inevitable, like developing the next generation of leaders.

Time and again working with business owners and entrepreneurs, I find that they seem to think they are going to live and work forever. Talk about failing to plan for inevitability! There is a general sense of, “I am just going to live and work forever. If I ignore the inevitable long enough, it won’t ever come to fruition.” The reality is that there are certain things that will come to fruition that business owners need to consider. One of those is preparing the next generation of leaders.

Oftentimes I see founders of businesses that have a great business plan, feel like they are going to live and work forever, but have not spent the time, energy and investment to help develop their next generation of leadership.They have overlooked the importance of developing a way for the next generation to seamlessly take over the business once they retire or leave. I think this is a significant challenge because mature business owners tend to get frustrated when the next generation of management and leadership isn’t ready. This creates the self-fulfilling prophecy of needing to continue to work longer and harder since they don’t have the next wave of managers in place. Bottom line, business owners really need to face the inevitability that they are not going to live and work forever, and they need to be preparing for what’s next. They should consider:

• Who can take over this business?
• Who can we delegate things to?
• Who can we work with and mentor?

It is important to develop the next generation’s people skills, strategic thinking skills and courageous management skills. It is important to help them develop their road map for the future and to help them understand how the business is going to continue after the founder has moved on to the next level.

Finally, I believe it’s important for business owners to develop strong leadership skills in the next generation. I see many business owners spending a lot of time working with and mentoring people on the technical aspects of their business. For example, if it’s a welding business, they teach them how to be a great welder. What they don’t teach them is how to manage all of the other welders. It’s not just spending time in your mentoring focusing on technical skills, it’s also spending time teaching them about leadership, how to deal with people, how to implement strategy and so on.

Entrepreneurs and business owners, it is time to face the inevitable. You cannot work and live forever. Take the time to strategically plan ahead, be a mentor and prepare the next generation for successful leadership.

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