Five Ways to Make Handing Over the Reins Easier

One of the most difficult things for a founder to do is find a successor and hand over the reins of the business.

Some founders set their companies up for failure by picking weak replacements because they don't want their successors to appear to outshine them. I have seen this happen many times. Other founders pick people who have been loyal to them but who lack the right skills to oversee the organization and take it to the next level. Some want their kids to take charge, even when the children either don't want the job or are ill-suited for it.

Founders of companies come in all shapes and sizes and with all manner of psychological baggage. A few common categories are:

Unwilling departure: There are horror stories, such as the sons of the founder of U-Haul having their father escorted out the building by security. ...