Why Training Your Successor is a Good Idea

Have you ever worked for someone who was at the top of the food chain within an organization and thought, “Wow, that person really energizes me. I want to better myself so I can take their job”? Or have you thought, “How is that person in a leadership role when they can’t make a simple decision to save their life?”

What is a leader? Are leaders born, or can they be taught? What are the differences between leading and managing? These are some of the questions posed to us in our third CEIP class this previous week.

I consider myself a leader. When I look at the word leadership, a couple of key words come to mind: passionate, motivating, knowledgeable, integrity, coach (teacher) and dedicated. These are traits I consider myself having.

Then I looked at these words and asked myself, “Can these traits be taught, or are they values that have been instilled in you through childhood?” Yes, I believe a leader can be born but also can be taught, as long as they are willing to learn. But when I answered that question, I realized I might not be as good of a leader as I thought I was. What am I doing to teach and mentor new leaders?

Having five restaurants and the hopes of more, I need to be more vested in my people to develop great managers from emerging leaders. Understanding this made me realize that I was lacking the know-how to do that. At the CEIP class we discussed many topics, but the two that I am taking with me and implementing into my organization are developmental plans and succession plans.

The next generations are looking for these. They want to know how to get better at their jobs and how they are going to advance to the next level. Fifteen to 20 years ago, it was taboo to share all your knowledge with your successors because you were afraid of losing your job security. Now we call this a succession plan, and if you aren’t training your replacement, then you yourself will never advance.

I am sure the people who don’t have these are asking, “Well, how do I create a developmental plan?” Every organization is different, but I am going to start by identifying these leadership competencies: how do you manage yourself, how do you lead the team, and finally, how do you manage people.

Within those three categories there are subcategories. For example, in managing yourself, stregnths include “Models Personal Excellence,” “Communicates Effectively,” “Influences Others” and “Initiates Personal Growth.” My partners and I need to sit down and discuss what characteristics we feel are important to our organization for each category and subcategory. Then we can give effective feedback to our emerging leaders so they know exactly what they do well and where they need improvement.

I also see a skills set attached to the leadership competencies that should be completed in a time-line form. When a manager starts training, there should be small break-out groups discussing net sales, food costs, inventories, interviews, one-on-ones, budgets and weekly projections so that by the time they are done training, they have a good foundation for management. Then there is a future timeline for ongoing development so the emerging leader is continuously engaged and learning. 

When you grow within an organization or through many organizations, your goal should be to eventually rise to the top. Wouldn’t it be nice to know how to get there?