Dear Leah,
I’m Chief Operating Officer at a family business that’s been hugely successful, but we’re now facing our biggest internal crisis.
The Founder (age 72) wants to step back, and his two children - both capable executives in their 40s - are locked in a power struggle over succession. The daughter (current Marketing Director) has an MBA and clear strategic vision, but the son (current Sales Director) has deeper relationships with our biggest clients and feels it’s “his birthright.”
The Founder keeps changing his mind about who should take over, and both siblings have started building factions within the leadership team. Last week, the Marketing Director accused the Sales Director of “undermining company decisions” in front of the entire senior team. He responded by questioning her “understanding of our customer base.”
I’m trying to keep the business running whilst they tear each other apart. Our performance is starting to suffer, and I’m fielding questions from our best people about whether they should start looking elsewhere.
How do I protect the business without getting caught in family dynamics that go back decades?
Hello,
“Caught in the Dynasty Drama”!
You’re asking the right questions, but I have some more:
Which of them does the team respect most?
Why does it have to be either of them if it’s clear that trust is waning as the best people are on resignation watch?
When does the Founder want to step down by?
How is the Founder proposing to make his decision?
Who will replace their respective functions if one of them is promoted?
These two directors have a statutory duty to act in the best interests of the company, not in the best interests of their own careers or reputations and I would start by framing the whole situation around that reality.
DIAGNOSIS:
If the Founder hasn’t already made a decision, this limbo could go on indefinitely, and even after he has made a decision, he might change his mind. Companies need clarity and certainty to thrive.
THE ROOT OF THE PROBLEM:
The real issue may be that neither of them is the right choice to be promoted to CEO but everyone is too focused on the drama to consider alternatives. It sounds like the Founder is leaving them to thrash it out and they are incapable of coming to a decision without an adult in the room.
THE PATH TO RESOLVING IT:
Mediation is really helpful here because if you were to conduct a confidential process you have an opportunity to find out what is really important to each of them (i.e. money, external validation, one-upmanship or the opportunity to get penance for past grievances). You could also find out what is really important to the Founder in terms of his legacy and why he hasn’t made a decision.
YOUR ROLE GOING FORWARDS:
Bring in an experienced workplace mediator (like me!) to manage this succession situation with the family, and you can be free to focus on keeping all non-family members on task and enthused about a future that will be much better than the past few months.
