Author Description

How a business replaces its chief executive is a vital issue for the firm's future. Unless the transfer of power is managed effectively, the business may be thrown into turmoil--with profound implications not only for the CEO, but also for the other employees, the shareholders, and sometimes even the industry as a whole. Yet not enough is known about this crucial moment in the history of a company. Filled with inside stories from corporate boardrooms and fresh conceptual perspectives, The Hero's Farewell describes in rich detail the factors that affect executive succession, focusing for the first time on the critical role a CEO's departure style plays in helping or hindering the transfer of power. Sonnenfeld has obtained candid interviews with fifty prominent retired chief executives from corporations such as AT&T, Ford, Dupont, United Technologies, and Raytheon (including Edwin Land of Polaroid, David Rockefeller of Chase Manhattan, and Tom Watson, Jr. of IBM). Through these interviews and a survey of an additional 300 top managers, he identifies the four major types of leadership departure styles: Monarchs, who choose not to leave voluntarily but either die in office or are overthrown; Generals, who leave reluctantly and spend their retirement planning a comeback; Ambassadors, who retain close ties with their former firms; and Governors, who willingly serve a limited term and leave to pursue new interests. Understanding how these leadership styles affect the transition process can enable both CEOs and their firms to better prepare for the changes to come. Executive successions are rarely easy, especially today when, as the author points out, many of our business leaders have become heroes. These heroes are often unwilling to surrender control of a firm to which they have dedicated their lives. Retirement deprives them of a clear sense of purpose and indeed, for many, it is equated with abdication of responsibility and even death. Yet some retiring leaders exit