14. Assessing team capability & desire.

Assessing team capability and desire

Dave knew his team well. He had worked alongside many of them for years and trusted them to keep things running day to day. But stepping into a leadership role after the owner exits is a different challenge. It requires not just operational know-how, but strategic thinking, emotional resilience and the ability to carry the weight of the business.

With guidance from RegenerationHQ, Dave approached this question systematically. First, he looked at capability—who had shown leadership under pressure? Who understood the financial and strategic aspects of the business? Who had taken initiative beyond their role? He then looked at desire—who actually wanted to lead?

It turned out that capability and desire did not always line up. One team member showed clear potential but had no interest in taking on the top job. Another was keen but lacked the broader skill set needed to manage customers, staff, operations and risk all at once. In some cases, the interest in leadership was more about status than responsibility.

Dave ran informal interviews, gave some people small projects with higher stakes and watched how they responded. He also asked direct questions. Do you see yourself leading this business? What support would you need? What do you find most challenging in your current role?

These conversations gave him clarity. They also showed his team that he was taking the decision seriously. Assessing capability and desire early meant Dave could explore succession honestly, without assumptions or pressure.

Navigating family expectations and limitations

One of the unspoken questions that surfaced early in Dave’s exit planning was whether a family member might take over the business. Like many owners, Dave had fielded comments over the years—Are your kids going to run it one day? Will it stay in the family? Even though no one in his family had ever directly asked for the reins, the expectation hung in the background.

John encouraged Dave to face the question head-on. Family succession brings emotional weight. There is a desire to honour legacy, protect relationships and avoid disappointment. But those feelings cannot override the practical needs of the business.

Dave took time to consider the real picture. His children had their own careers. None had expressed serious interest in running the company, and none had been involved in the day-to-day operations. While they were proud of what he had built, they did not want to step into his role. Dave realised that any push in that direction would come more from obligation than ambition.

He spoke openly with his family. He explained where the business was heading, what support he had around him, and why he believed a professional successor—rather than a family member—was the best option. These conversations were honest, respectful and free of pressure. As a result, there were no hard feelings.

By navigating family expectations early, Dave avoided future tension. He made decisions based on what was right for the business, not what might have seemed right from the outside.

Using objective criteria to evaluate fit

When considering a potential successor, it is easy to be swayed by personality, loyalty or gut feel. Dave had long-standing relationships with several team members and knew their strengths and quirks well. But choosing someone to lead the business after he stepped away needed more than instinct. It needed a structured, objective approach.

With support from RegenerationHQ, Dave created a clear set of criteria to evaluate fit. The goal was to separate emotional bias from the real capabilities needed to run and grow the business. The criteria included leadership ability, financial literacy, strategic thinking, decision-making under pressure, communication skills and team influence. They also considered softer traits like emotional maturity, coachability and how well someone could represent the business externally.

Each candidate was assessed against this framework through observation, conversations and structured testing—such as giving them a scenario to manage or asking them to present a plan for improving a part of the business. This process helped reveal who was ready, who needed development and who might not be suited to the role at all.

What surprised Dave was how different the outcomes were from his initial assumptions. One person he had considered a quiet performer showed strong leadership potential when given the space. Another who had been outspoken about wanting more responsibility struggled when faced with difficult trade-offs.

Using objective criteria gave Dave clarity and gave his team confidence that any decision would be fair, considered and based on what the business truly needed.

Trial leadership roles and development plans

After assessing the team’s capability and interest, Dave saw potential in a few individuals who might grow into stronger leadership roles. While they were not ready to take over the business, they showed promise. Rather than rush into a decision, Dave decided to test what leadership looked like in practice—by creating trial roles and clear development plans.

With guidance from RegenerationHQ, Dave set up defined trial periods where selected team members took on added responsibility. This included leading meetings, managing small projects, representing the business in supplier or customer conversations and making decisions with real operational consequences. It was not about setting them up to fail. It was about creating a safe but real environment to test leadership under pressure.

Each person had a clear scope, support, and regular feedback. Dave and his senior team tracked performance, decision quality, communication and how well they earned trust from others in the business. These trials gave Dave practical insight into how people led, not just how they talked about leading.

At the same time, each participant was given a personal development plan. This focused on areas like financial understanding, strategic thinking or people management. The message was clear—leadership was not about a title. It was about growth, accountability and readiness.

These trial roles helped Dave rule some people in and others out. More importantly, they showed his team that the business was serious about leadership development, whether or not the successor would come from inside.

Facing hard truths about internal options

After months of honest assessments, leadership trials and difficult conversations, Dave had to face a tough reality—none of the internal candidates were ready to take over the business. Some had potential but needed years of development. Others simply did not want the responsibility, even if they were capable on paper. A few had quietly hoped for the role but, when tested, struggled to make decisions under pressure or lead with confidence.

This was not an easy conclusion. Dave had worked with many of these people for years. He respected them. He trusted them. But as John from RegenerationHQ reminded him, exiting well means putting the needs of the business first. A rushed or forced succession could create more harm than good—for the business, the team and even the successor themselves.

Dave had to let go of the idea that internal succession was the safer or simpler option. It was not. Pretending someone was ready when they were not would only delay progress and possibly undo years of hard work. Facing that truth allowed him to make a clean decision, one that was based on facts, not feelings.

He sat down with those who had been part of the process and spoke honestly. He thanked them for stepping up, outlined what he had learned, and shared what development would continue. The respect he showed in these moments strengthened trust, even in disappointment.

Facing hard truths is part of leadership. Dave’s willingness to do it helped protect the future of the business and allowed him to move forward with confidence.

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