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The purpose of this paper is to examine how information-processing mechanisms between nominating committees (NCs), incumbent executives, board chairs, and shareholders affect the comprehensiveness of executive succession processes.

The authors employ an explanatory multiple-case study that comprises eight CEO and CFO succession cases in large German publicly traded firms.

The findings reveal that comprehensiveness is determined by four key information-processing mechanisms: the effectiveness of NC’s information sharing, absorbing disagreement, and integrating heterogeneous opinions; board chair leadership (i.e. an apprentice board leadership structure in association with the board chair’s openness to ideas); the breadth and depth of information sharing between executives and NCs; and the extent and timing to which major shareholders influence succession processes.

The authors summarize the findings in a conceptual framework and develop a set of propositions to guide future research on the topic. Such studies may want to test the suggestions in a quantitative way, preferably in a multinational context.

The authors’ emerging conceptual framework contributes a set of information-processing variables by which NCs engage in comprehensive executive successions with incumbent executives, board chairs, and major shareholders and offers a multiechelon approach to study executive successions.

The purpose of this paper is to provide a model that can explain how organizations may retain their executives’ tacit knowledge in the organization especially during the succession period. The proposed model takes into consideration three critical contexts that may assist in improving the knowledge flow during the transition period, namely, motivation context, transition context and ability context.

This paper presents a conceptual framework that emphasizes the importance of the will and skill of two parties involved in succession, i.e. the predecessor and successor, as well as the context of the succession. To this end, the paper advances a set of propositions that explain how these different contexts affect the quantity and quality of the knowledge acquired by the successor at the end of the succession period.

This paper advances a theoretical model that describes the antecedents and moderator of job-specific knowledge acquired during executive succession.

This paper presents a theoretical model that explains knowledge flow during the transitory period of succession. It emphasizes the importance of the motivation and ability of the partners involved while taking into consideration the context of succession.

This paper contributes considerably and in a practical manner to managers in general and to human resource managers in particular. It draws the attention of concerned managers to check the motivation of both successor and predecessor in experiencing the transition, explain to the successors the job description of the position to direct their attention to learn specific knowledge and equip both parties involved in the succession with the needed skills.

This paper advances a new concept termed as accelerated engaged tacit knowledge acquisition. This concept complements other perspectives of knowledge flow and learning and takes into consideration the specific context of executive succession.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the perceptions of five leadership succession themes by executives of Estonian nonprofit organizations.

This is a qualitative study that uses narrative inquiry and purposive sampling. Face-to-face and Skype interviews were conducted with 15 executives.

Succession was unplanned in most of the Estonian nonprofits; successors were coached during initial transitionary periods; insiders were preferred to outsiders; requirements of executive positions were unmet because of a talent shortfall; lack of trust, unexpected behavior, and possible ethical issues were key risk factors associated with succession; and mixed opinions were received regarding the advantages and disadvantages of succession planning.

Narrow focus on Estonian nonprofit organizations and their executives, purposive sampling, and single qualitative research method. Results may not be applicable to other nonprofits.

Practitioners of Estonian nonprofits can better understand the implications of executive succession issues. Lessons learned may help other nonprofit leaders.

Having a carefully crafted succession plan can enable smoother transitions between organizational leaders and create organizational stability, thereby ensuring a continuous delivery of goods and services to clients.

Seminal research – this is the first study of its kind on Estonian nonprofit organizations and executive succession issues. This paper can serve as a foundation for further research on Eastern European nonprofits.

The purpose of this paper is to introduce CEO succession (and subsequent TMT turnover) as a knowledge enabler. Focusing on absorptive capacity, an important dynamic capability involving the acquisition, assimilation, transformation and exploitation of knowledge, this paper highlights the role of a new CEO in emphasizing specific facets of the knowledge management (KM) process to fulfill expected strategic mandates.

This paper presents a conceptual framework that underscores the importance of CEO succession as a knowledge enabler by depicting its influence on the various dimensions of absorptive capacity. To this end, this paper develops an integrated set of propositions that unpack the influence of different types of CEO successions that trigger and enable different KM processes involved dimensions of absorptive capacity.

The theoretical framework presented in this paper suggests that given a certain succession context (forced or voluntary turnover of predecessor) different types of CEO succession, combined with possible executive turnover, will constitute a reorientation in top management experience and expertise. This will in turn trigger certain dimensions of absorptive capacity (potential or realized), to fulfill specific strategic mandates such as strategic change or strategic continuity.

This paper presents a theoretical framework that underscores the importance of studying CEO succession in conjunction with their influence on different knowledge dimensions of absorptive capacity. CEO succession (and subsequent changes in top management team composition) is suggested to be a knowledge enabler. Based on the context of CEO turnover (forced vs voluntary) and the amount of change undergone in TMT composition, different types of CEO succession (based on their origin) are suggested to have different challenges to overcome and different strategic mandates to fulfill. Fulfilling these strategic mandates will require an emphasis on different facets of the KM process, which is encompassed in the dimensions of absorptive capacity. This will, in turn, resolve questions about which knowledge activities the organization needs to invest its resources in and resources allocation decisions may become easier.

Based on their origin, three kinds of CEO succession have been described in this paper – insider-follower, insider-contender and outsider succession. Each of these types of succession encounter different challenges and are expected to fulfill different kinds of strategic mandates. Accordingly, this paper proposes that each kind of CEO succession trigger and enable the knowledge components of absorptive capacity (knowledge acquisition, knowledge assimilation, knowledge transformation and knowledge exploitation) in different manners. This will in turn, allow firms to prioritize the allocation of resources toward different kinds of knowledge activities related to absorptive capacity.

This paper suggests that the CEO succession event, although broadly discussed in management research, has been overlooked when it comes to KM in organizations. Given that strategic leadership is one of the powerful enablers of organizational practices and outcomes, this paper emphasizes that different types of CEO succession may be able to influence the KM process by enabling the different dimensions of absorptive capacity (potential and realized).

This paper aims to raise the level of awareness of the critical need to have a chief executive succession plan in nonprofit organizations.

This paper uses a review of survey literature to determine the degree to which nonprofits plan for chief executive succession.

The findings reveal a serious lack of planning for successors in nonprofit organizations.

This paper underscores the need for a three-pronged approach by nonprofit boards of directors, chief executive officers, and HR departments to address planning for successors to prevent potential chaotic organizational situations and create sustainable nonprofits.

The aim of this paper is to investigate CEO succession in China's state‐owned enterprises (SOE) from within intra‐industry labor market. One hypothesis looks at the proportion of SOEs in the industry which will be negatively associated with the likelihood of intra‐firm succession. Another proposition claims the performance gap between SOEs and the industry average level is positively related to the likelihood of intra‐firm succession.

Secondary source data on 79 CEO successions and descriptive company measures were obtained. Background variables such as ROA and employee number were collected from the Tianjin Statistical Yearbook. Pearson and logistic regression coefficients provided tests of hypotheses.

The hypotheses are strongly supported given all measures of performance. The likelihood of intra‐firm succession is negatively associated with the proportion of SOEs in a particular industry. The lower the performance of SOEs behind the industry average level, the greater the likelihood of intra‐firm succession.

The sample size used is moderate. Even though Tianjin is a large industrial center, generalizations to all of China may be limited.

The results support the overall argument that firms within a gradualist economic transition environment in China will tend to choose an internal CEO succession when firms have a limited qualified managerial supply outside the organization. Future research examining the CEO successor in both SOEs and non‐SOEs will provide a more complete picture of organization management with transitional economies evolving into the largest world‐leading economies.

The data base is unique. The paper looks at the business activities and management processes of China's SOEs for the purpose of understanding the way leadership develops; and the organizational effect it has on top management succession. The research not only contributes to the succession literature but also enables managers and investors to better understand the practice of top management succession in Chinese SOEs.

This paper seeks to summarize the development of a systematic approach to assessing executive potential by studying a major medical device manufacturer that aimed at substantially increasing its pipeline of candidates for top executive positions through programs designed to identify and assess high potential leaders.

The study illustrates a range of issues pertinent to developing integrated approaches to succession planning, including identification of criteria suitable to the culture of the organization and its strategic challenges, sound assessment of candidates and integration of program efforts with development needs of high potential managers. The approach developed in the case provided consistent criteria for assessing leadership potential in a global corporation and relied on methods derived from assessment centers.

Events of the case led to the development of systematic and integrated processes promoting succession planning and executive development. The program has been well received by high potential managers and seems to have yielded benefits in retention of top executive talent.

Since program development, 64 percent of candidates nominated with high degrees of confidence have been promoted and 70 percent have experienced either functional or cross‐business‐unit moves – compared with a 20 percent promotion rate and a 38 percent attrition rate for individuals not participating in the process.

The paper discusses the events that led to the development of systematic and integrated processes promoting succession planning and executive development.

This study explores family firms' ex ante conflict management strategies to preserve their socioemotional wealth (SEW) under predictable conflict through the succession process. Specifically, the authors examine how family firms leverage the insurance-like benefits of corporate social responsibility (CSR) to mitigate the threat of foreseeable family feuds among the sons of firms' family heads.

The authors focus on the charitable donations pledged by Korean family business groups (chaebols). Using the data of 62 chaebols with generalized least squares (GLS) models, the authors analyze 711 observations from 2005 to 2017.

The authors find a positive relationship between the number of sons of a family firm's head and the firm's CSR activities such as spending on charitable donations. Furthermore, the number of daughters of heads in executive positions strengthens such a positive relationship, whereas the number of business and political marriage ties weakens this relationship.

Family heads of family businesses may leverage CSR activities and marriage ties to elite families interchangeably to ward off negative impacts from foreseeable family feuds and preserve their SEW. Thus, a policy-based incentive for CSR that encourages more family heads to use CSR as insurance would serve the public interest.

The authors contribute to the family business literature by suggesting that CSR activities can be used by family firms as an instrument to mitigate foreseeable damage to the SEW caused by family feuds. The authors also shed new light on CSR research by finding that marriage ties to elite families may reduce the strategic value of CSR activities.

There is no previous systematic and theoretical investigation of the interim CEO succession practice. This research attempts to fill the gap by studying this phenomenon and hence advance executive succession research/practice.

Based on agency theory, the authors propose a model and several propositions to predict what determines the origin of interim CEOs, the length of the interim tenure, and the career prospects for the interim CEO after the interim tenure.

Both firm performance and environmental uncertainty play an important role in the dynamic interim CEO succession process.

The paper provides the foundations for future empirical research on interim CEO succession.

Board members at companies experiencing sudden CEO departures should choose a loyal non‐aggressive veteran to be the interim CEO so as to minimize disruption and to smooth the transition. They should use caution when choosing an internal candidate because if such a candidate is not chosen to be the permanent CEO later, a talent may be lost.

The research is the first to systematically examine the phenomenon of interim CEOs. The authors make a unique contribution to the literature on CEO succession.

Succession planning concerns the selection of talented employees to replace senior managers who leave the firm because of retirement, reassignment, or other reasons. Effective succession planning emphasizes minimizing disruption and dislocation arising from such personnel changes, with a view to implementing business strategy and achieving organizational goals in a smooth and continuous manner. Although succession planning is an essential requirement for the long‐term development and success of business enterprises, previous studies have rarely investigated the empirical relationship between succession programs and human resource outcomes. This study employs empirical data collected from business firms in Taiwan to address that question.