As an Ohio business owner, you have probably grown accustomed to your company playing a massive role in your day-to-day life. One day, however, you will undoubtedly want to step away from that business, whether to retire, spend more time with family or what have you. At Dinn, Hochman & Potter, LLC, we understand that a carefully crafted business succession plan can help you streamline the process of turning over the leadership of your business, and we have helped many clients who own their own businesses navigate this and many related issues.
According to Forbes, one of the best things you can do with regard to creating a solid business succession plan involves giving yourself ample time to do so. If you can start the process of grooming a potential successor and otherwise getting your ducks in a row five years before you plan to leave your company, great, and if you can give yourself even more time to do so, it will typically only help your cause.
Choosing a business successor is a critically important step in the process, but you do not necessarily need to focus on one person, exclusively, to take the reins of your business. Instead, give yourself time to consider several different potential successors, and then speak with each one you are considering to get a better sense of whether they are right for – and whether they even want – the leadership role.
If you still think a potential successor is a strong candidate, ask yourself whether he or she might need to undergo any specialized training before assuming the successor role. You can also start to set your potential successors up with mentors or support systems that will be able to help them during the transition. You can find out more about succession planning on our webpage.