The Adirondack Regional Chamber of Commerce’s Women’s Business Council is hosting its second Succession Sumit, a panel discussion that looks at a part of business planning that is often ignored, organizers say. The purpose this year is to begin to create the “culture of succession” that organizer Sherry Finkle Murphy said is too often ignored in the North Country.
“The Summit begins the work of creating the next generation of community and business leaders by reminding our business community that succession is not a transaction, it is financial, it is legal, it is community resource. It is all of the above,” she said in a recent interview. She said it should be thought of as an ongoing process, not a one-off situation.
In the first summit, the goal was to explain what succession really means, how it applies to the retention of employees and clients, or how it maintains the best practice culture of the company, Finkel Murphy said.
This year, she said they are not looking just at corporate succession but succession as it applies to community leadership and mentoring. The business community needs to make sure it has the people to replace the current leadership that may decamp at any moment for the warmer climes of Florida, she said.
“Succession and Continuity Planning are key business activities that frequently take a backseat to growing revenues, trimming costs, or running day-to-day business operations,” press materials for the event say. “Whether you are a community leader, business owner, executive, or a next generation rock star, join us as we and our panel invest an afternoon to discuss why succession is a critical business activity in which you should engage.”
"We will be hosting a panel of domain experts," Finkel Murphy said, adding that the discussion will cover nuts-and-bolts around three scenarios:
- My business has survived its startup and now I need to grow it to the next phase. What do I need to put into place to ensure continuity, employee/client retention, and resilience?
- I have a family-owned business. How do I transition successfully from generation one to generation two and beyond? What about the non-participants in the family business?
- My plan is to grow my business and sell it to a key employee or to a third party. What do I need to consider now in order to be successful? How should I value my business?
In addition to Sherry Finkel Murphy, a private wealth advisor and certified financial planner, the panel this year includes people from accounting, law, human resources and technology. The summit is Wednesday May 11 at the Queensbury Hotel in Glens Falls.