Succession Planning Is NOT Leadership Development (But It Is One Result)
Leaders sometimes equate succession planning with leadership development and even speak of them interchangeably. They are both important, but they are not the same. Don’t confuse succession with leadership development. Succession is not leadership development, but it is one result of leadership development. If leadership development is the root, wise succession planning is one of […]
4 Qualities of a Leader Ready for Succession
Over four years ago I became the Senior Pastor of Mariners Church, succeeding Kenton Beshore who faithfully served our church with integrity and skill for 35 years as Senior Pastor. Over the last four years, Kenton and I have fielded many calls from Senior Pastors, elder boards, leadership teams, and potential successors—all asking important questions […]
2 Reasons Succession Demands Intentionality
Five years ago, February 2018, is when I received the first inquiry about my interest in becoming the next senior pastor of Mariners Church. I became the senior pastor that September and since that moment have received a lot of questions from other leaders about succession. My predecessor, Kenton Beshore, and I are convinced that […]
What You Say About Your Predecessor Says More About You
Leaders who bash their predecessors, either overtly or subtly, are speaking much louder about themselves than they are speaking about their predecessors. It is a common occurrence, sadly, in leadership. You have likely seen it. A new leader arrives and starts to speak poorly about the past, even about the leader of the past. Perhaps […]
8 Ways to Treat your Successor
We are only eight months in to the transition at Mariners Church between Kenton Beshore (long-time senior pastor) and me (the new guy). But we are frequently receiving phone calls from churches that see succession from a long-time senior to a new leader in their not-so-distant future. The healthy relationship Kenton and I share is […]
3 Ways to Treat Your Predecessor
Since being named Kenton Beshore’s successor and becoming the senior pastor of Mariners Church eight months ago, other church leaders have started to ask questions of us about succession. There are many churches in this season, where the church is led by a faithful and great leader who has led for many years and is […]
3 Bad Excuses for Avoiding Leadership Development
Great leaders intuitively know they are responsible for future leadership, and all leaders have heard these catch phrases: “There is no success without succession” and “Work yourself out of a job and you will always have a job.” Yet few leaders plan and prioritize developing others. There is always something else to do, always an […]
3 Reasons You MUST Regularly Think About Succession
With the team I lead at LifeWay, I regularly discuss succession with those on my team. Props goes to Earl Roberson, the associate VP in our division, for encouraging me in this several years ago, setting the example, and operationalizing the practice with our team. We have discussions about who would be ready to move […]