Lilly Lin is an Executive Director with Russell Reynolds where she advises clients on broad talent management issues, including succession, leadership development, and assessment. Throughout her career, Lilly has worked with large and small, for-profit and mission-based organizations, establishing herself as a trusted advisor who is highly skilled in preparing clients for their near- and long-term succession needs. She is an active member in the Society for Industrial Organizational Psychology and is often chairing or speaking at SIOP’s annual conference.
Mentioned on the Show:
- Lilly’s profile on the Russell Reynolds website: https://www.russellreynolds.com/en/people/consultant-directory/lilly-lin
- Connect with Lilly on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lillylin1
- The Roy Family – a cautionary succession tale: https://www.hbo.com/succession
- The New CEO by Ty Wiggins (book): https://a.co/d/7xQj5yn
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- Connect with O’Brien McMahon on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/obrienmcmahon/
- Learn more about O’Brien: https://obrienmcmahon.com/
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Timestamps
(1:30) – Meet Lilly Lin of Russell Reynolds
(3:29) – What is succession planning?
(5:08) – Does succession planning include planning for leaders below the CEO?
(7:53) – Why is changing out the leader so hard for an organization?
(11:11) – Is it always a good idea to have a successor ready to take over?
(16:42) – Successor talent pools.
(17:25) – Where does the succession plan begin?
(20:20) – The Board's role in succession planning
(23:38) – What are the attributes of a good CEO?
(25:57) – Internal vs. External CEO candidates.
(27:49) – Are CEO candidates asked if they want to be CEO?
(35:33) – What happens to candidates not selected to be CEO?
(43:53) – How does a selection committee assess the potential of a candidate for 3-5 years in the future?
(47:32) – The NFL: dropping the ball on effective succession planning?
(50:01) – How to transition from old guard to new guard.
(53:55) – What are the characteristics that make a good leadership transition team?
(55:56) – What are some of craziest things you’ve seen in a succession transition?
(58:51) – How to contact Lilly.
