The Bard addresses the board on CEO succession.

• Author: Augustine, Norman R.

"O gentlemen, the time of life" -- and a CEO'S time on stage -- "is short."

William Shakespeare had much to say to the 21st century board member. This, of course, comes as no surprise since at the root of most board issues is people -- customers, management, employees, regulators, stockholders, bankers, even fellow board members -- and no one ever understood people better than the Bard.

'NOTHING IN HIS LIFE became him like the leaving it," Malcolm says in Macbeth. Nothing in a CEO's life -- or in a corporate board's -- should be so becoming as having a replacement in place at all times for each key person in the company hierarchy.

The fiery Hotspur warns in Henry IV, Part I: "O gentlemen, the time of life is short!" That's especially true of a CEO's time on the stage, averaging a mere halfdozen years or so for major firms -- and declining. Hence a top priority of all main actors is to have in the wings not one but several individuals able to assume center stage. The problem is that this notion is counter-intuitive to some senior executives, which in itself should be a warning sign to a board to get ready for a change.

The selection among leadership candidates is one of the most important decisions that a board of directors will ever make. Many of Shakespeare's worst leaders were chosen by birth, rather than merit. Although this occasionally works well in today's business, it defies the odds. After the glorious Henry V, for instance, the corner office in the castle went to Henry VI and VII. This poor fellow, Henry VII, felt he shouldn't be king -- one of the few things about which he was correct.

On Shakespeare's stage, as in the modern executive suite, good leaders are good mentors who develop those around and beneath them. They create growth opportunities for subordinates -- being fully prepared to lose them to other parts of the organization which offer opportunities for professional growth, especially in breadth. Julius Caesar, for instance, developed his staff professionally, and they in turn placed him on a pedestal...at least until some disgruntled colleagues placed him on a marble slab. (The stakes for CEOs were even higher in those days.)

In today's business world, as in ancient Rome, strong leaders build strong institutions. Ironically, the stronger the leader, the greater are the succession problems likely to be encountered.

Neither Cassius nor Brutus did any succession planning when scheming to give Caesar the ultimate retirement...