Succession is a process, not an event

Owners tend to think of succession as a single day with a signature on it. In practice the handover of judgement takes years longer than the handover of shares.

The work is unglamorous: writing down what only you know, letting someone else make the calls while you are still there to correct them, and being specific about which relationships are the business’s and which are yours.

Start five years out and it is a plan. Start at eighteen months and it is a sale.