Succession planning: What your business can learn from Brighton
Disclaimer: This header image contains seagulls. Not those Seagulls. Using an actual photo of the team would have cost more in royalties than our annual marketing budget, so we went with the above instead. Cheaper, louder (I’ve been to the Amex and it’s like a library), and significantly less litigious.
Those that know me well, know that I am partial to a bit of football now and again (soccer for the US amongst you).
In recent years, Brighton & Hove Albion FC has become the gold standard in smart succession planning. They don’t wait for a star player to leave before finding a replacement, they act early.
Moisés Caicedo replaced Yves Bissouma. Julio Enciso came in before Alexis Mac Allister moved on. It’s all part of a carefully orchestrated strategy; always be one or two steps ahead.
They are planning and recruiting replacements three to four transfer windows ahead, so that when a star player leaves, the replacements are ready to step in.
This isn’t just smart football management, it’s brilliant business thinking.
In the business world, too many owners wait until a key team member resigns unexpectedly or until they’re looking to sell the company, before thinking seriously about replacements.
This reactive mindset leads to rushed decisions, lost momentum, and diminished business value.
Succession planning, when done right, ensures your company continues to thrive, with or without you. The acid test of a good business and a saleable business is how long it can continue to operate without the owner in the business.
Whether it’s grooming your replacement (MD, GM, Head of Ops), identifying high-potential managers, or preparing the business for eventual sale, the goal is the same: make yourself (and others) replaceable before you need to replace them.
Here’s how to build a Brighton-style succession plan:
- Recruit early, not urgently – Don’t wait for someone to leave. Always be scouting for talent who could step into key roles in 12–24 months time
- Develop from within – Like Brighton’s youth pipeline, your business should identify and nurture internal talent, giving them the tools and opportunities to grow into leadership roles. Many will take on more responsibility given the chance
- Document processes religiously – If a key person left tomorrow, could someone else pick up where they left off? Process clarity is essential as processes run the business and people run the processes
- Think beyond individuals – Avoid single points of failure. Cross-train staff so no single person holds all the knowledge or power
- Make yourself sale ready – Even if selling isn’t imminent, operate like it is. A business with a clear succession plan is worth more and is more attractive to investors or buyers
Brighton & Hove Albion FC didn’t just stumble into Premier League success, they planned for it. Likewise, the most resilient and valuable businesses are those where continuity is built in, not bolted on, so there is no loss of momentum, service level or culture.
Succession planning isn’t just a safety net. It’s a strategy for sustainable growth and a key enabler for your eventual exit.
Do you have plans in place to recruit your replacement? If not, you should have.
