If you’re looking for some excitement in business, look no further than leadership succession. It’s never ordinary. That observation is from Jim Lukaszewski, crisis counselor to Fortune 100 leaders and president of the Lukaszewski Group, and it applies to communications professionals and their businesses as much as anyone else.
“They are like earthquakes,” he says. “Disruptive but incredibility interesting.” In a large corporation, when a board declares it’s looking for a successor, it triggers an intriguing set of actions and behaviors, Lukaszewski says.
Generally there are two sets of candidates: internal and external (even though the an internal candidate is likely to be successful at twice the rate as an external prospect). Already, says Lukaszewski, there’s tension. Then, if the succession process takes longer than a year, it’s a recipe for disaster. The longer the process, the more the leader who’s leaving mucks around with the process, trying to torpedo the leading candidate.
At the end of the day, succession gets messy, even in a well-established process. In recent weeks, we’ve been seeing that dynamic in real time as NBC works its way through the eventual replacement of longtime “The Tonight Show” host Jay Leno with Jimmy Fallon. (Of course, this is the second attempted replacement of Leno in three years—Conan O’Brien lasted about seven months starting in mid-2009.) This time around, Leno has been miffed, ripping the Peacock every chance he gets on his nightly monologue.
Communications plays a key role in ensuring a smooth succession process and PR leaders should have succession planning on their radars both for their organizations and themselves. It’s very possible, Lukaszewski, notes, that the chief communications officer may have been handpicked by the departing CEO, which could put the CCO’s job in jeopardy once the top leader is gone.
So public-relations executives must play a more integral role in grooming their underlings—and peers in neighboring departments such as HR—to be strong team players and compelling future leaders.
It’s an internal communications thing, it’s an integration thing, a brand-building thing, and a succession-planning thing. But ultimately, it’s just good business.
BUSINESS CONTINUITY
Being managing partner and co-founder of communications agency Peppercomm, Steve Cody recognizes the importance of succession planning. “It’s critical to the business continuity of the agency,” Cody says. “Take a look at some of the bigger PR players, and you can see when it’s done well and when it’s done badly.”
Ketchum is an agency that Cody looks up to in terms of a smooth leadership transitions. “Leaders are groomed one after another,” he says. “Ketchum is flawless in this area compared to its competitors.”
Cody strives to make Peppercomm’s succession strategy flawless as well. To accomplish this, he’s currently working with a consultant to update the agency’s objectives and vision for the next several years. “When Ed (Moed, cofounder and manager partner) and I decide to leave, we want the process to be seamless,” Cody says.
Proactively planning for succession is important for Peppercomm’s top talent, because they know there’s a light at the end of the tunnel, Cody adds.
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
The first step in succession is to identify the PR superstars in the running to lead the business (Peppercomm has six or seven of them). Like a baseball scout, Cody looks for five skills: strategic counseling, new business development, building a culture within the workplace and business knowledge.
Ted Birkhahn, who has risen through the ranks to become agency partner and president, is a prime example of one who possess those five skills, says Cody.
The succession consultant is doing a series day-long retreats with Peppercomm’s senior management, Cody says. The focus there is on management training and business development skills.
When employees have a solid understanding and backing, they can easily be coached for leadership positions. Everyone, including those employees on the lower rungs, should feel that they have the chance for growth and promotion.
Otherwise, they have no incentive to be part of the team. By doing this, any succession won’t be a surprise. “It can be a total drain on people’s energy, and can really scare them,” Cody says. That’s what Peppercomm is trying to avoid.
The agency even goes one step further, holding an annual internal crisis exercise that simulates the unexpected loss of Cody and Moed. “How would our senior team handle the agency?” Cody asks. It’s a question he doesn’t like to think about, but must be prepared for.
At the end of the day, PR leaders can plan for their own departures, but it’s hard to weather the departure of a CEO. Lukaszewski says most successions—particularly at large companies—involve office politics.
His one recommendation: Get to know the boss and the people who the boss knows the best. It’s the only way for succession survival. PRN
CONTACT:
Jim Lukaszewski, jel@e911; Steve Cody, [email protected]; Rick Gould,
Your PR Agency is Being Sold: Do You Stay or Do You Go?
Rick Gould, managing partner at StevensGouldPincus, a company that specializes in PR industry mergers and management, has been involved in many a PR agency sale. If you are a client of an agency that’s about to be sold, what signs should you look for when deciding to stay or find another agency? Here are four signs to consider from Gould:
1. Synergies: Is the succession plan of the two agencies in sync? The goals between buyer and seller must be in harmony.
2. Added Services: If the seller doesn’t have expertise in digital, will the buyer offer that expertise? If it’s a larger firm, it probably will.
3. The New Team: You may be have been happy with the team you’ve been with. But if it was a smaller agency, it may have been over-servicing you to keep you in the fold. Find out if the fees will go up, and if the services will be as good.
4. Potential Conflict: If you’re with a pharmaceutical company and the buyer has a big pharma brand on its roster, the new agency might not be able to take you in as a client.