Leadership transition has been an ongoing issue since the beginning of time, affecting everyone, from kings and queens to national and local governments, villages, corporations, and community associations. It is a critical factor in fostering ownership among young leaders, ensuring business sustainability, and promoting innovative longevity and resilience.

My engagement in creating and promoting the development of local young talent, along with building leadership transition models, began in 1992 when I first joined a major global NGO as the Director of Administration, Finance, and Human Resources (DAF). 

What quickly became clear to me was our dependence on expats for leadership roles, which posed significant cost barriers to expanding programs and budgets.

At the same time, we were not sufficiently investing in local young managers to take on greater responsibilities. In my view, this represented a failure in effective planning and sustainability, and it did not align with the core values or strategic mission of the organization I was working for.

Case Studies: Empowering Emerging Leaders

To illustrate the impact of effective leadership transition, I present two case studies of remarkable women from diverse backgrounds whom I had the privilege to recruit, mentor, and promote within global organizations.

Case Study 1: Marie

Marie comes from in West Africa, and we worked together from 2009 to 2011 while I was based in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. Marie had a track record of solid HR management roles in the country. Upon joining the regional leadership team, I made it a contractual obligation to select, mentor, and coach a female HR manager from the region who would eventually assume my role as Regional HR Director. Although I aimed for this transition to occur within 18 months so that I could fully support her as an advisor to the end of my contract, my boss insisted on a timeline of 30 to 36 months.

To break the glass ceiling within our leadership team, I took proactive steps. I insisted that Marie attend our leadership meetings and have her desk in my office. This arrangement allowed her to absorb the realities of my phone calls and participate in unplanned meetings with key stakeholders. Despite facing initial opposition from my boss, I remained true to my approach. 

Marie co-managed a significant downsizing and restructuring process due to a 25% budget reduction around the 18-month mark. During this period, we reduced the expatriate team from about 130 experts to 34 while also making considerable cuts to national staff. The experience was challenging but ultimately transformative for both Marie and our organization. Since leaving that organization, Marie has excelled in various national and regional leadership roles within multiple global NGOs.

Case Study 2: Leandra

Leandra is from the Indian Ocean region, and had been working for an international crypto/block chain company as well as having launched her own ecommerce activity. I recruited her to join me in my CHRO role for a Dubai-based group of five startups in late 2020. Initially hired as my virtual assistant, she was promoted to associate HR expert within two months. I appreciated that she was three hours ahead of my time zone, allowing me to delegate tasks effectively at the end of my workday for her to tackle when she began her morning. 

Each morning while exercising on Le Promenade des Anglais in Nice, France, we held daily 'stand-up' calls to prioritize our work. During my tenure with this startup, we successfully recruited over 90 consultants and employees across 19 countries and from 22 nationalities. Leandra left the company alongside me in January 2021 to join my practice at Accendo Groupe. About six months later, I had the opportunity to place her with one of our former colleagues in his two new ventures. Over the past two years, she has been promoted to an operations manager role and serves as this entrepreneur’s right hand in his rapidly growing digital marketing and social media advertising activities.

The Importance of Leadership Development

The core ideas and processes I developed were initially implemented in the 1990s in Mauritania for a major NGO. These concepts were further tested in the U.S. business environment in the early 2000s. My passion for launching organizations led me to take on a leadership role in an NGO educational structure in Cambodia during the mid-2000s. Since then, I have applied these critical ideas across various HR and people transition management missions for global institutions and government-funded programs.

Framework for Effective Leadership Transition

In the early '90s in Mauritania, our leadership team embraced several influential approaches:

• Stephen Covey's Principles: We adopted Covey’s "7 Habits of Highly Effective People," focusing on truth north principles and time management strategies.
• Paradigm Shifts: Inspired by Joel Barker, we aimed to create paradigm shifts within our teams while viewing change as both positive and normative.
• Appreciative Inquiry Model: This model was utilized to focus on individual member’s strengths and build team cohesion, positivity and organizational strength.
• Vision and Strategy Development: Our planning process was rooted in shared principles such as integrity, loyalty, responsibility, and honesty. We aimed for a flat organizational structure with an open-door policy that encouraged participation.

These frameworks not only guided our internal processes but also provided a foundation for empowering emerging leaders like Marie and Leandra.

Focus on Talent Development

Despite operating in regions often perceived as lacking human resources, we believed in uncovering diverse talent. We committed to hiring only the best candidates who fit our organizational culture. Transitioning from reliance on expatriate management teams to investing in national talent allowed us to promote individuals within their countries. I firmly believe that building strength upon strength requires focusing on three key attributes when selecting candidates:

1. Quick Thinkers - Hire individuals who are street-smart and solution-oriented.
2. Passionate Individuals - Look for men and women driven by their core values and their hearts.
3. Resilient Candidates - Seek those with grit and tenacity to see projects through effectively.

This approach contrasts with traditional recruitment methods that prioritize educational qualifications or specific work experience but often overlook essential personal attributes that contribute significantly to success.

Investing in People

Achieving company vision and sustainable success necessitates ongoing mentoring and coaching of young talent by executives and senior staff. This investment must include continuous skills enhancement training tailored for diverse talent—particularly women—who require additional initiatives to integrate into organizations effectively.

In my experience working across various sectors globally, I've witnessed firsthand how organizations thrive when they invest genuinely in their people—providing them with opportunities for growth while fostering an inclusive environment where everyone feels valued.

Empowering Decision-Making

Building effective succession plans is futile if high-performing talent lacks delegated responsibility and decision-making authority. These individuals must feel empowered to make guided decisions without fear of repercussions for failure—an essential aspect of fostering innovation within teams. 

Managers must support their team members by taking responsibility for mistakes made during the learning process; this creates a culture where experimentation is encouraged rather than stifled by fear of failure.

Fundamental People Management Practices

Since the '90s, I have adopted team-building practices inspired by "Topgrading" by Bradford Smart. We designed a performance management program including regular updates, weekly feedback sessions, and bi-annual 360° performance appraisals tailored towards individual growth trajectories aligned with organizational goals.

While we strive to hire top talent consistently, not all hires meet expectations or fully engage with our vision; thus utilizing tools like 360° evaluations helps identify areas needing improvement while recognizing high performers deserving advancement opportunities. 

Now nearly 32 years after assuming my first leadership HR role in Africa, my professional mission remains unchanged: creating empowering company cultures that maximize positive feedback while promoting excellence across all levels—innovation being at its core alongside diversity & interdependency leading towards profitability sustainably over time.

Conclusion

I get enormous professional and personal satisfaction from witnessing the success of my international relationships with former colleagues from Africa, Southeast Asia, North Africa, Europe, and America.

Many of them have gone on to lead international projects or thrive as entrepreneurs and government leaders. This success is particularly gratifying as it stems from my mentorship during their formative training years, where we worked diligently together to achieve the goals set at the outset of our mentoring and training programs.

The most important outcome is that leadership succession has been accomplished on numerous occasions, which has not only led to sustainable growth but also had a positive influence on multiple professional lives during the years that we worked together to develop talent wherever it could be found!