MikeLeadership transition is a topic that keeps coming up in my consulting work and in my conversations with pastors and other ministry leaders. That’s no surprise. It’s a huge issue when a long-time, revered leader is approaching retirement. And everyone knows horror stories of failed transitions. For the most part, these horror stories usually revolve around the over-sized egos of the outgoing leader. It’s the leader who has trouble letting go, who sees any post-transition change in direction as a personal affront, and who may even secretly hope that the successor fails. In Good to Great, Jim Collins identified this as a trait of a “Level 4” leader. As Collins says of this type of leader: “What better testament to your own personal greatness than that the place falls apart after you leave.” These kinds of ego issues are enormous problems, but by focusing on them, we often overlook the smaller, subtler ego challenges that can get in the way of a healthy transition. The outgoing and incoming leaders may agree on how the baton will be passed, on the timing of the transition, and on respective roles. But things can go awry when:
- The retired pastor agrees to officiate a wedding for a good friend’s daughter. The transition plan said that he would not do any weddings or funerals, but it never occurred to him the agreement would apply in this case. The new pastor hears about this and starts to question the integrity of his predecessor.
- A key leader and long-time friend of the outgoing leader shifts attention to the new leader. It appears that the friendship may have been based on proximity to power, and the retiring leader starts to feel resentful.
- Both leaders are working together on setting the key priorities for the coming year. The incoming leader proposes a new initiative but the outgoing leader assures her that it won’t work. The outgoing leader just thinks that she’s sharing wisdom and avoiding a train wreck. The incoming leader feels micromanaged and wonders if she’s going to be allowed to truly lead.
