Promoted? Here's how to help your successor shine

"These numbers reflect the critical need for effective support during leadership transitions. If this sounds familiar, here's how leaders can coach someone up to replace them. COACH THEIR MINDSET AND NOT JUST THEIR SKILL SET When we hand off a role, we often default to knowledge transfer. We overemphasize tools, systems, and processes. But that is not where most leaders struggle. The deeper fear for most new leaders is internal: Will I ever be as good as you?"

"Carrie kept comparing herself to me: My years of training experience, my understanding of facilitation, and my established role as the go-to expert. I had to give her permission to be different. In fact, she brought strengths I didn't: deeper business knowledge, stronger relationships across departments, and a leadership style that had already made her one of the most respected managers in the company. Helping her identify and leverage these strengths was far more important than teaching her how to plan a training calendar."

Many promoted leaders fail without effective transition support: 35% of internal promotions and 47% of external hires are considered failures. Knowledge transfer often emphasizes tools, systems, and processes, but new leaders more commonly struggle with internal doubts about capability. Coaching should focus on mindset by giving successors permission to be different and helping them identify strengths such as business knowledge, cross-department relationships, or a distinct leadership style. Practical transition conversations should probe intimidating role aspects and map existing strengths to responsibilities to enable successful handoffs and sustained team performance.

Read at Fast Company