Succession planning is a crucial aspect of any organization, and your brokerage is no exception. The first step in succession planning is defining the vision for success. The only thing more powerful than vision is shared vision.
Once the shared vision is in place, the BATON framework can help real estate organizations ensure they have a smooth transition of leadership, and that business continues to thrive for years to come.
Believe you truly have a successor. The first step in any successful succession plan is to empower any potential successor(s) within your organization. This means identifying executives who have the potential to take on broader leadership roles and ensuring they have the necessary skills and experience to succeed. It’s often helpful to have a professional outside of your organization evaluate the potential of your leadership team.
Activate Plan – Coaching, Goals, Accountability. Once you’ve identified potential successors, invest in leadership development programs, providing regular feedback and coaching, and setting clear expectations and performance metrics. As CEO, you need to make sure you’re making time with them. It should be obvious to your successors that you’re investing in their growth. Leadership coaching or succession-plan coaching will help you make a seamless transition.
Training – Time, Tracking, Attention. Training is critical for any succession plan, but it’s doubly so if your successor is a family member. If a family member, consider a third-party advisor or coach as an additional resource. While your wisdom and guidance can be invaluable, third-party expertise could have an impact on the entire organization. Probe your teams’ interests and provide the resources to empower their performance.
Outside Exposure – Managers, Industry, Peer Groups. Emerging leaders need an opportunity to get in front of the managers, top producers and teams in your business. They need opportunities to network with industry leaders, participate in peer groups and engage with the broader real estate community. It also means giving them exposure to your organization’s other key stakeholders. This is important so that the people in your business will have confidence in the new leader when the time comes for them to step up. It also gives your potential successors a broader perspective on the industry.
New Leader – Measure, Coach, Inspire, Push, Hand Off. When the time comes to transition to a new leader, it’s important to measure, coach, inspire and push your successors before you hand them the baton. You need to give your potential successor(s) opportunities to lead projects and teams, coaching them through the process, inspiring them to take on new challenges, pushing them to excel and experience success.
By following a shared vision and the BATON framework, your business will be ready for new, inspired leadership in the future. WAV Group can work with you to set a shared vision, provide leadership coaching and implement the BATON process.
For more information, visit https://www.wavgroup.com/about-us.
