The new demands on retail CEOs
In the space of a decade or so, we’ve seen retail activity shift from selling products through store chains to tailoring real-time offers to customers via a multitude of channel and fulfilment possibilities based on their unique individual needs.
Good retail leadership used to be about having well-priced products that customers wanted to buy and executing really well in store. Of course that remains important, but it’s now also about keeping up to date with new technologies and translating millions of pieces of customer data into actionable business decisions.
Not to mention managing data security, promoting sustainability, building an inclusive workplace, supporting employee wellbeing, forging collaborative partnerships — the list goes on. CEOs need to achieve all of this whilst projecting a calmness, approachability and authenticity that enables them to engage a diverse range of stakeholders.
No wonder having the right CEO in place is so critical.
Are boards doing enough?
Appointing the CEO is arguably the board’s most critical responsibility, with the UK Corporate Governance Code spelling out the importance of implementing effective succession plans for key leadership roles. When companies outline the principal risks and uncertainties they are facing, most will admit that a failure to attract and retain the talent they need could impact their ability to deliver strategic objectives.
But acknowledging the importance of protecting the business against leadership gaps is one thing, actually doing so is quite another. And according to CHROs, boards could be doing more.
In preparation for World Retail Congress, we surveyed CHROs from global retailers to understand what is being done to mitigate this particular business risk.
We found that high levels of transition are expected; 57 percent believe that as much as half the executive committee, including the CEO, will move roles over the next five years. But only 16 percent are very confident there will be at least one internal candidate for the CEO role, whilst 42 percent feel either somewhat uncertain or very uncertain.
Managing CEO succession
It is the board’s duty to manage this risk and to ensure they are well prepared for CEO transition, even if there is no change on the horizon. A key principle of good succession planning is to make it a routine part of the board’s agenda — an ongoing process rather than a one-off event.
Following best practice, the board should always have to hand a CEO profile aligned to future needs and an informed view on who from within the company could be developed to take over. They should invest in preparing potential internal successors ahead of time, consciously broadening their experience and giving them exposure to the board in preparation for the top job. At the same time, they should conduct regular market scans in order to know who the strongest external candidates could be. When the time comes to appoint a new CEO, they will then be able to make an informed choice on who to appoint.
The insights gained during a well-run succession process can then be translated into coaching support for the new CEO, enabling them to hit the ground running.
Those retailers that manage succession planning proactively and invest in the next generation of leaders will be best placed to succeed in the future, whatever it may bring.
This article was first published in Retail Week magazine.