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Thinking about departing the business you’ve poured your energy into for years is a daunting task, and so it’s no surprise many owners put it off. But one principal argues the process can be positive if you lay the groundwork well in advance.
“I live and breathe by plans,” Cathy Baker said during a recent podcast episode of REB’s The Wire.
Ms Baker, who won Sales Agent of the Year at the 2021 Women in Real Estate Awards and took out the Excellence Award that same night, operates with a 10-year plan at all times, which encompasses shorter-term five-year and two-year plans, as well as a firm 12-month business plan that’s created with her team’s active input.
It comes “from everybody within our business, contributing to that plan and being then committed to the vision and mission of where we’re heading and the values and targets that we put in place”, Ms Baker explained.
And because her staff are so actively involved in the ongoing vitality of the business she owns, Ms Baker feels confident in including a rough road map to wind down her involvement in it, with several avenues for doing so, leaving her plenty of flexibility to choose the right path when it comes time.
Succession planning, she says, is “critical for any business owner”.
She believes it allows her to cultivate her team with a long-view and an understanding she may eventually be putting the firm in their hands.
“It’s important to have the right people coming up through your business that are a part of the future of your business long beyond you being here,” she said.
She advises owners to consider “different models of being able to provide equity options and shareholdings and incentives for people that have been loyal employees that are going through your business”.
Creating a share scheme also allows her to retain equity as she navigates her transition.
“Once you’ve decided that you’re not going to be in the business as much, the only other option you’ve got is to sell out,” she noted.
But that doesn’t mean she’s anywhere near her departure point yet. That 10-year plan also includes a number of goals and achievements she’d like to notch.
Rather, planning for succession means that she mentors her team with an understanding of how important it is that they feel committed to the venture and invested in their own progression.
“To me, the essence of what my business stands for is all about the care and the nurturing of people that I’ve built my business around. And that’s why I built all these training systems and mentoring programs in place so that people know exactly how that philosophy works and they are able to put it into action.
“But putting the right processes and systems in place means that other people can continue that work once I’ve stepped away or am in more of a strategic role rather than hands-on. And they can still follow the processes that I’ve created and the client care and the service, and hopefully, the business will stay strong and continue long beyond me having to fully be onsite all the time.”
Listen to the full episode here.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Juliet Helmke
Based in Sydney, Juliet Helmke has a broad range of reporting and editorial experience across the areas of business, technology, entertainment and the arts. She was formerly Senior Editor at The New York Observer.
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