The Next CEO: Board and CEO Perspectives for Successful CEO Succession

227 Pages·2021·1.717 MB·English

by  Thomas Keil and Marianna Zangrillo

“A book very much based on real life. It will help each board a lot to
answer one of their key challenges: ‘How to get the right CEO.’ ”
Prof. Dr. Michael Süss, Chair of the Board of
Directors, OC Oerlikon
“Few decisions are more critical and more challenging than CEO
succession. The authors offer rich insights into how the board and the
CEO need to work together to ensure a successful CEO transition.”
Heiner Thorborg, Headhunter
“The selection of the right CEO is by far the most important task of any
corporate board. The insights provided in this excellent book give the
reader a good understanding of what ‘right’ means, depending on the
board’s vision of upcoming challenges. At the same time, all new CEOs
and their organizations will benefit from understanding the mandate
given to the new CEO. I would warmly recommend this real life–based
playbook for corporate board members and CEOs anywhere.”
Päivi Jokinen, Chairwoman of European Women on Boards
“In The Next CEO, Keil and Zangrillo provide an insightful perspective
how boards and new CEOs can beat the odds of CEO succession and turn
what is one of the pivotal moments for all organizations into a success.
The book is full of helpful advice for boards, new CEOs, and those
supporting them.”
Erwin Mayr, CEO, Wieland Werke AG

THE NEXT CEO
Every year, companies spend billions of dollars in board time and
headhunter fees on CEO searches. In fact, by many accounts, the
selection of the next CEO is the single most important task of the board
of directors. Yet, despite the huge amount of time, money, and attention
given to the task, many CEO changes fail, with disastrous consequences
for all concerned.
With so much at stake, it is natural to ask what companies and their
boards can do to increase the odds of success. Illustrated with an abundance
of real-life examples from interviews with CEOs, C-suite members,
members of the boards, and headhunters supporting CEO searches, The
Next CEO explains how boards can improve the odds of success with
CEO succession by identifying clear CEO mandates and associated CEO
profiles and by selecting CEOs that are fit for purpose. It further explains
how the CEOs of leading corporations effectively take charge and create
results, providing a roadmap for incoming CEOs. These ideas are brought
to life with case studies and interviews with well-known corporations
such as ABB, Alibaba, Freudenberg, GE, Google, HNA, HP, Microsoft,
Nestle, Nike, Nokia, Novartis, Roche, Sony, Tata, and Zurich Insurance.
The book is invaluable practical reading for board members of
medium-to-large-size firms involved with CEO succession, and for those
preparing for their first CEO position. It is also relevant to headhunters
who are involved in the process of CEO succession as a working tool for
them and their clients. In addition, the book will be relevant to courses
on corporate governance and strategic transformation at the executive
and MBA levels.
Thomas Keil is a professor at the University of Zurich, Switzerland,
where he teaches strategy and international management.
Marianna Zangrillo is a corporate leader, business angel, and investor,
with experience in companies such as Nokia, Kemira, Swissport, and
Infront Sports.

THE NEXT CEO
Board and CEO Perspectives for
Successful CEO Succession
Thomas Keil and
Marianna Zangrillo
First published 2021
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
and by Routledge
52 Vanderbilt Avenue, New York, NY 10017
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2021 Thomas Keil and Marianna Zangrillo
The right of Thomas Keil and Maria Anna Zangrillo Gallinaro to be identified
as authors of this work has been asserted by them in accordance with
sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or
utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now
known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any
information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from
the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or
registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation
without intent to infringe.
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Keil, Thomas, 1970 February 6– author. | Zangrillo, Marianna, author.
Title: The next CEO : board and CEOperspectives for successful CEO
succession / Thomas Keil and Marianna Zangrillo.
Description: Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon ; New York, NY : Routledge, 2021. |
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2020050934 (print) | LCCN 2020050935 (ebook) |
ISBN 9780367551827 (hardback) | ISBN 9780367557003 (paperback) |
ISBN 9781003094777 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Chief executive officers—Selection and appointment. |
Chief executive officers—Recruiting
Classification: LCC HD38.2 .K464 2021 (print) | LCC HD38.2 (ebook) |
DDC 658.4/2—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020050934
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020050935
ISBN: 978-0-367-55182-7 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-0-367-55700-3 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-1-003-09477-7 (ebk)
Typeset in Bembo
by Apex CoVantage, LLC
CONTENTS
Acknowledgments xi
Introduction 1
Make or break 3
CEO mandates 5
The work of a new CEO 6
The next act 7
The structure of the book 9
PART I
Boards defining the mandate and profile for a new CEO 13
1 Preparing for CEO selection 15
CEO mandates 16
Thinking strategically about the mandate 20
CEO profiles 24
CEO selection process 28
2 Continuation – more of the same 34
What are continuation mandates? 35
When do boards choose a continuation mandate? 35
viii CONTENTS
Why internal candidates are a natural choice 38
Common characteristics and problems with the
continuation mandate 40
3 Evolution – adaptation within boundaries 44
What are evolution mandates? 45
When do boards choose an evolution mandate? 46
CEO profiles: internal or external candidates? 47
Common characteristics and problems with the evolution
mandate 50
4 Transformation – bringing the organization to the next level 54
What are transformation mandates? 55
When do boards choose a transformation mandate? 55
CEO profiles for transformation 60
Common characteristics and problems with the
transformation mandate 65
5 Turnaround – breaking with the past under pressure 71
What are turnaround mandates? 72
When boards choose turnaround mandates 73
The CEO profile for turnaround mandates: external CEOs –
the natural choice 74
Common characteristics and challenges with the
transformation mandate 77
PART II
The work of a new CEO 83
6 Mastering the strategic mandate 85
The nature of the new CEO’s work 87
The new CEO playbook 88
Supporting the new CEO 91
7 Taking charge 94
The folly of the first 100 days 96
Preparation before day one 98
Day one: managing first impressions 101
Listen rather than speaking: learning about the organization 104
Early actions 106
CONTENTS ix
8 Building a personal platform 112
Creating a strong core team 114
Empowering the core team 120
Building deep networks 122
9 Driving results 128
Establishing and communicating a compelling vision 131
An organization-wide movement for change 134
Leadership behavior 136
Pace of change 138
Sequence of actions 142
Continuous feedback and communicating progress 144
PART III
The next act 149
10 The life cycle of a CEO 151
CEO life cycles 152
The initial mandate 155
Beyond the initial mandate 159
Moving on 161
11 Sustaining the succession pipeline 168
Developing a succession pipeline 169
Roles in succession planning 174
Identifying the right moment to change the CEO 176
Succession planning in different types of companies 178
Succeeding at talent development and CEO succession 181
12 The CEO of 2030 184
Implementing best practice 185
Developing and being open to a truly diverse set
of candidates 186
Looking beyond linear career paths 187
Driving analytical processes through technology 189
Bibliography 193
Index 203