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What�s involved in choosing a successor?

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First, understand that succession planning doesn�t have to mean just the owner, founder, or CEO. This can include anyone whose departure from your company would hurt the company and be difficult to replace, such as the controller, the director of sales and marketing, chief officers, or the research and development director. Of course, the amount of planning will probably be greater for the head honcho, but you should keep these items in mind for any and all key players.

Identify possible replacements. Who could fill the shoes of a key player if that person left suddenly? This could be a permanent or temporary replacement.

Look inside and outside of the company. Who in your company shows potential for advancement? Are there other potential candidates outside the company?

Evaluate all potential successors. Look into their backgrounds, qualifications, future goals, fit for the company, and so on. Use assessment tools or companies, as needed, to make sure you choose the right fit.

List your first, second, and third choices. Not knowing when or if you�ll need to find a replacement makes it hard to set a concrete successor, so choose several and rank them in order of preference.

Have key players document information. If one of your officers, managers, or directors left suddenly, would anyone else in the company know everything that person did�and how to do it? Probably not. Have everyone document all of their business tasks, including contact information, location of important files and documents, key contacts, and anything else someone filling their position would need.

Cross-train your employees. Cross-training makes sense for so many reasons. Even lower-level employees can cross-train and help fill in when vacancies occur, keeping your business up and running while you search for a replacement.

Ask for help to formalize your plan. Professionals exist to help you create a formal succession plan and make sure you have all your bases covered.

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