Succession and Legacy Planning

In most cases, the departing sales professional possesses certain competencies and attributes that have made them successful. Many sales mangers, when faced with the task of replacing these folks, search for someone just like them. This is a mistake.

Succession planning is the approach taken to evaluate the changing needs of the sales assignment. Review and analyze what demands the last salesperson faced and determine what has changed. Is the competition different? Is the marketplace different? Are your products and services changing? Is the required technology different? How about size and complexity of the territory and marketplace? What about global issues? What unique new competencies and attributes will be needed by the salesperson coming into the job that the past salesperson could get by without because of his or her experience and years of service?

Legacy planning, on the other hand, is different. One of the key findings that came out of the significant downsizing of the 1980s and 1990s was the fact that the majority of knowledge on how to do the job disappeared with the individual being downsized. Perhaps some of the first to recognize this were the managers in federal agencies during President Reagan’s term in office. As they reduced headcount, their effectiveness decreased.

Organizations operate on three communications levels. The first is the formal processes built into an organizational design. These are the SOPSs (Standard Operating Procedures) or M&Ps (Methods and Practices).

The second is the informal communications that bypass formal processes to get the work done more quickly. This conversation is in the hall or at the coffee machine, and it contributes a significant amount of functionality to a business. In fact, studies have shown that this is the channel by which the bulk of the work gets done.

The third is the social network or relationships that exist within a business. Friends network and help friends. Just watch who goes to lunch together or parties together outside of work. They may not realize how much communication pertaining to business functions take place in this environment, but the amount is amazing. Consider the last time you or your associates played golf. Business topics were part of the entire day’s conversation, and a lot of action items came out of the eighteen holes.

To solve this problem, excellent managers track the career progress of their sales personnel and determine when they are likely to move out of the organization. In preparation for this event, a plan is put in place to capture what these people do to be successful in their territories or assigned responsibilities. Perhaps they tutor a younger person. Maybe they document historical patterns of the customers. Whatever the process, make sure you capture what they know before they leave. This is legacy planning