Building a succession team is one of a leader's vital responsibilities—not when someone leaves, but while the organization is at peak performance. Every organization eventually needs to delegate, hand over, or simply expand into new territory. The question is not whether needed or not — but rather are you prepared?
Perhaps you have felt this: a key department head suddenly resigns, and the entire system seems shaken for weeks. Or you want to expand into a new market but cannot find anyone to entrust with the responsibility. The question “Why did I not prepare earlier?” often arrives then, but it is too late for regret.
This article is not HR theory. It is the perspective of someone who has worked alongside many leaders, witnessing organizations that stood firm through upheaval and those that faltered for lack of a successor. The difference, almost always, lies in one word: proactive.
1. Why Do Leaders Often Put This Off?
Most of the people I meet knowing that you need to build a succession team. Yet you still have not done so. Why?
There are some very real, very human reasons — even if they are not always spoken aloud:
- “It is not urgent yet.” When everything is running well, a leader's brain often prioritizes immediate fires rather than what matters in the long term.
- “I have not found someone worthy yet.” Sometimes this is true — but sometimes it is an excuse to avoid harder work: developing people.
- “I am afraid of becoming unnecessary.” This is the least acknowledged yet most common reason. Genuine delegation requires a degree of letting go — and not everyone is willing.
Great leadership is measured not by what leaders accomplish while present, but by what the organization accomplishes after they are gone.
Recognizing the real reason behind procrastination is the first step. Without judgment—just look directly.
2. Succession Is Not “Finding Someone to Replace Me”
Many leaders mistake succession for replacing personnel: someone leaves, find another. But this reactive thinking often leads to hasty, costly decisions and unnecessary disruption.
Building a succession team, properly understood, is a a continuous process of human development — not a one-time event. It means proactively looking at each role in the organization and asking:
If this person leaves tomorrow, do we have someone ready to step in? If we expand into a new area, who on the team can grow enough to lead it?
This is not a question for human resources. It is a question for the highest leader.
3. Three Layers in the Succession Preparation Journey
I usually see this journey in three layers, from foundation to summit:
Layer 1 — Identify: Who Has Potential?
Today's strongest performer is not necessarily the best successor. A successor needs the ability to learn quickly, adapt to new pressure, and sufficiently self-aware to know what you do not know. Look at team members who not only complete work well but also ask “why” and “could we do better?”
Layer 2 — Develop: Give Opportunities Before They Are 100% Ready
There is a paradox many leaders face: they wait until someone is “ready enough” before assigning major responsibilities — yet people truly mature only when entrusted with major responsibilities. This circle never breaks on its own unless someone is brave enough to begin.
Assign a project with controlled risk. Allow the person to make mistakes and learn. Stand alongside them, but do not take their place.
Layer 3 — Handover: Let Go Consciously
This is the hardest layer — psychologically, not technically. Letting go of control while retaining responsibility is an art. It requires well-founded trust, a clear feedback system, and — most importantly — a leader quiet enough within not to intervene out of personal anxiety.
Genuine empowerment does not mean losing power — it multiplies the organization's capabilities many times over.
4. Systems, Not Just People
Another common mistake: preparing only person without preparing system. Even the best successor will lose their way without documented processes, a clear organizational culture, and transparent decision-making mechanisms.
Perhaps you have seen this: a talented person is promoted, but just a few months later starts to falter — not because they lack ability, but because they received the role without the map. Everything is still in their predecessor's head.
Building succession therefore also includes document tacit knowledge — what you know but have never written down, the decisions you make intuitively but have not yet been able to explain.
5. A Culture That Allows Others to Grow
This is where management meets spirituality.
An organization can build a genuine succession team only when its culture allow others to grow beyond the leader — at least in some respects. When the work environment makes people afraid to surpass their boss, take initiative, or fail, no succession program can work, however systematically designed.
The real question is not “Who can replace me?” but “Have I created an environment where others dare to try?”
Awakened leaders do not build teams dependent on them — they build teams that remain steady when they are gone.
6. Practice Now—A 5-Minute Exercise for a Leader
Take 5 minutes, now or at the end of today, for this simple exercise:
- Take a blank sheet of paper. Write down the 3–5 most important roles in your organization (including yours).
- For each role, write the name of someone who could step into it within 3 months if needed. If any box is empty, that is an organizational blind spot.
- For the blank spaces, ask yourself just one question. “What is stopping me from starting to develop someone for this role?”
- Write the honest answer—not the beautiful one.
This exercise does not solve the problem in 5 minutes. But it brings you face to face with the truth—and that is always the best starting point.
7. Begin Today—Even if the Organization Is Doing Very Well
The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago. The second-best time is today.
This old saying applies to many things in life — especially building a succession team. No one plants a tree during a storm. You plant when the soil is still soft, when the sun is still shining, and when you are calm enough to care for it.
When an organization is operating well, that is the ideal time to lay the foundation for its next generation of leaders. Not because a crisis is coming—but because true sustainability is built in peace, not panic.
It is not easy. But it is possible.
If you are a leader wanting to go deeper on this journey—from understanding yourself to building an organization with depth—you can find related perspectives in the book Starting a Business with Right Livelihood or explore more at taminhtuan.vn.
Tạ Minh Tuấn (Saga)
Frequently asked questions
When should building a succession team begin?
As early as possible—ideally while the organization operates steadily, not after a staffing crisis has occurred. Preparing in calm times is always more effective than reacting in panic.
Who is suitable to become a successor?
Not necessarily the strongest performer today. A good successor needs the ability to learn quickly, adapt to pressure, and enough self-awareness to know what they do not know. Potential and attitude often matter more than current experience.
Why do many leaders postpone succession planning?
There are usually three reasons: no sense of urgency yet, not having found the right person, or — common but rarely admitted — fear of becoming unnecessary when empowering someone else.
Does succession planning need to be complicated?
Not necessarily. The starting point can be simple: for each important role, identify whether someone could step into it within 3–6 months if needed. The empty boxes show where people development needs attention.
How can I empower people without losing organizational control?
The key is systematic empowerment: build clear procedures, establish regular feedback mechanisms, and allow those entrusted with authority to make mistakes within a range they can learn from—instead of continually intervening out of personal anxiety.