Letting Go and Knowing Who to Let Go To

Recently, I was speaking with the managing partner of a CPA firm who indicated that he wanted to begin slowing down in about five years and then continue on a part-time basis until his spouse dragged him out of the office or carried him out – whichever came first.

That’s fine, I assured him, but did he have someone in-house that could assume the reins or was he looking for an affiliation opportunity? He stared at me like a contestant on Final Jeopardy who was just asked to name an 11-letter world capital.

Sadly, this is not an isolated incident. But in the rare instance he did have a cadre of young lieutenants from which to choose, how would he determine which was the best to carry the torch? Not every veteran insider has the right toolkit with which to lead. Some peak early, while others are late bloomers. Still others are happy with their present station and perhaps don’t want top management responsibilities.

So how do you ascertain the anointed one? Well, there are some basic indicators that might help.

·         They are continually learning. I doubt legendary leaders like Jack Welch of GE ever stopped reading or told any one of his thousands of employees, “I know everything there is to know.”

·         They get along with the firm’s employees. Playing well in the sandbox is more than just a metaphor. If they’re going to lead, they need the respect of everyone.

·         They’re eager to take on more responsibility. Look at their track record since they joined the firm and see how they’ve progressed in terms of handling new assignments and if they have asked to take on more.

·         They’re not afraid to take risks. CPAs by nature are not very adventurous in terms of risk-taking strategies. Even fewer are great business people and are often stymied by the “paralysis by analysis” syndrome. But the ones that aren’t will surely be easy to spot.

And if no one fits any or all of the above-stated criteria, then it’s probably past time to sit down and start planning a viable transition.

For those keeping score at home, the correct response to the Final Jeopardy question is Ulaanbaatar, the capital of Mongolia.