Succession planning CEO

Succession planning is a major entrepreneurial challenge - especially when it comes to the succession of management and key positions. According to a 2020 study by Bisnode, 75,038 companies in Switzerland need to find a successor. This means that 13.1 percent of companies are facing a transition to the next management generation.

The succession problem is most pronounced among sole proprietorships, where 20.5 percent of businesses have an open succession. The figure is 12.9 percent for public limited companies and 7.7 percent for limited liability companies. A smooth process is essential to ensure the success of the company. Good planning and a clear strategy are very important here, but the interpersonal components should not be underestimated either.

In our latest blog post, we discuss the CEO succession process. This is a topic in which Batterman Consulting has many years of experience since 1982. Time and again, we have the privilege of managing exciting C-level projects for our clients. In this blog post, we would like to give you an insight into this important topic and hope that you can benefit from it in one way or another.

We recommend that you think about the topic of succession at an early stage - long before the time actually comes. The issue of succession is particularly important for family businesses and SMEs and is one of the biggest challenges facing an entrepreneur, as it is also associated with considerable emotion. The right management team is crucial to the success of your company. The interaction between the strategic direction from the board of directors and the operational implementation by the management plays an important role. Ideally, the two complement each other and thus take the company forward.

A change in key positions can represent both a strategic opportunity and a strategic risk. For this reason, early, continuous and intensive planning and a tailored approach are essential if the company's success is to be ensured. It is very important that the interests and objectives of all stakeholders are taken into account. Stakeholders include the current incumbent, the successor, the management, the board of directors, the owners/shareholders and, in the case of family businesses, the family.

Below we give you an insight into how we at Batterman Consulting approach succession consulting:

Every company and every position is different. That's why we don't rely on ready-made solutions when it comes to top management searches. We work with you to analyze the initial situation and your needs. We put together our team of specialists individually for you. We select the right modules for you from our modular service processes. This enables us to make your recruitment a success.

Once your current situation has been clarified and we know the requirements profile, your needs and wishes, we start identifying and directly approaching suitable candidates. It goes without saying that the highest level of confidentiality is our credo. You will be kept informed of developments and progress on an ongoing basis, as regular communication with you is very important to us. Once we are in possession of the application dossiers, we begin the evaluation process. Initial discussions take place between the candidates and our consultants and we prepare the dossiers of the most convincing candidates for you, including our assessment. You then decide which candidates you would like to get to know better. If required, we will be happy to support you with our presence during the interviews. To get an even better impression of the candidates' personality and management style, we ask the applicants to complete an online assessment. We then discuss the evaluation of the behavioral profile analysis with you. As soon as you have decided on the right candidate, we will be happy to support you in the contract negotiations and continue to provide you with advice and assistance afterwards. We guarantee 100% for a period of three months. This means that if the contract is terminated, we will conduct a new search for you for three months, without paying the placement fee.

Thanks to our many years of experience in executive search in various sectors such as life science, industry, real estate, services and retail, we can draw on an extensive network of executives to find the perfect candidate for your company. At Batterman Consulting, we are committed to positioning you and your company to realize your vision. Be it succession planning, the appointment of a new CEO or the search for members of the executive board. We will find the right candidate for your company in all areas. If you have any questions, you can contact us at any time using the contact form below. We look forward to hearing from you!