How to ensure a smooth transition of the business to the next generation?

In the absence of a robust succession plan, a majority of family-owned printing enterprises in India fail in a smooth transfer of leadership from one generation to the next. Autoprint managing director, CN Ashok addressed this issue in his Print Summit presentation titled ‘Will the next generation inherit?’

27 Jan 2017 | By Rushikesh Aravkar

Ashok said, “Generally, the reason for conflict between the two generations is because the older generation resists letting go and tries to restrict next-gen in his way of doing things.”

Ashok spoke about “establishing a strong positive balance in the emotional bank account.” The Emotional Bank Account is a metaphor for the amount of trust that exists in relationships and positive behaviour with the next-gen over the years are deposits to this account.

Ashok stressed on the importance of accurate data. “Your instructions to the gen-next should be backed by accurate data and reasoning. Make your point with the help of accurate data and its meaningful graphical representation.”

“Standalone information has no value. Data should always be presented in comparison with similar historical data,” added Ashok.

Finally, Ashok spoke about gofer delegation and stewardship delegation and explained how the later is an effective method of delegation. “Stewardship delegation is delegating the right level of responsibility and authority. Make the gen-next captain of the next diversification project, allow him to own the work and communicate progress and results at agreed upon intervals. And provide guidance and support when needed.”

Tags : Print Summit 2017,Autoprint;