Protecting the partnership equity

WITH so many factors involved in running a company, business owners tend to have multiple plates spinning in the air at the same time. They are often so busy running the day-to-day operations that they may not have the time for succession planning.

This is particularly so for SMEs headed by sole owners or several business partners. What happens when the owner or one of the partners is no longer able to lead the company due to a sudden death, illness or disability? The unfortunate answer is that without a proper succession plan in place, the business often folds and ceases to exist.

Succession planning refers to the process of identifying and grooming internal employees with the potential to fill key business leadership positions within the company. As you can imagine, however, implementing an effective succession planning programme takes considerable time and resources, which many SMEs may not possess.