The time has finally come; you're ready to retire, and you've found the perfect protégé to keep your business going strong. So what do you do now?
Preparing, training, and advising your successor doesn't have to be a complicated process. Use these tips to ensure he or she has the know-how needed to excel:
- Have a reasonable timeline. Readying the future owner of your HVAC business isn't a quick item to check off the to-do list. Walking through everything he or she needs to know can take time, so you want to prepare a realistic timeline to finish training. Check out our retirement planning guide to get an idea of how you can include this preparation into your retirement timeline.
- Set aside time to train. People often don't realize the work that goes into everything they do until they have to explain the process to someone else. Make sure you schedule specific times for training your successor rather than simply teaching as you go. This way, he or she will have plenty of time to ask questions and understand how to accomplish tasks without the added pressure of performing on the spot in front of employees or customers.
- Have your successor shadow the whole company. Every person in the company has a different role, and it's important for your protégé to understand what each member of the team does and how the different departments work together. HVAC business owners obviously have the technical expertise, but they also must be familiar with accounting, marketing, HR, and other areas that contribute to the overall success of the business.
Maintaining a realistic timeline, coordinating specific times to train, and familiarizing your candidate with every role in the company will make all the difference in preparing him or her to run the business. By investing time today, you can prepare your successor and your business for a better tomorrow.
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