Lessons from Herman Cain: What Happens to the Team After the Boss Leaves?

As you are most likely aware, the big news from this weekend was the departure of Herman Cain, Atlanta businessman & presidential hopeful, from the GOP presidential primary campaign.

Almost immediately after his announcement on Saturday, the next big question was: what will happen to his supporters? Not surprisingly, the remaining GOP presidential candidates are working double-time to try and obtain the backing of Herman Cain’s followers and, presumably, his campaign staff as well.

Which raises an interesting question: what happens to teams after the boss leaves?

In presidential politics, the answer appears at its surface to be like the game Monopoly: one candidate goes under, leaving their property, money, houses, hotels and all up for grabs. But does this hold up in the business world as well?

Let’s play this out, using the assumption that your boss – like the candidate in a political campaign – is a powerful, central figure in your organization, the spiritual core of the operation highly visible to staff and customers alike. Now, for one reason or another, this person is gone. The way I see it, the team could be affected in 4 possible ways:

1.         An “heir apparent” is quickly put in charge –  Either the boss’s deputy, or someone in another similar management position within the firm is appointed by senior decision makers, in an effort to right the ship and get things back on track to as close as they were before.

2.         An outside replacement is sought – Lacking an appropriate substitute from within the ranks, the company turns to headhunters and other search options to find the right candidate to lead the team.

3.         The team is reorganized – Perhaps the group was organized in such a way that it benefited the boss, but now that he/she is gone it doesn’t make much sense anymore. Time to shake things up a bit.

4.         The team is dissolved – Perhaps, though, like a presidential campaign without a candidate, there really is no future in the business after all.

Each of the above options impacts the team and the organization in different ways. Which do you think takes the least or most time to implement? Which do you think would be most effective? When would you use one approach over another? Are there options to combine the above?

Regardless of your politics, Herman Cain’s decision not to seek a Pennsylvania Avenue address in Washington, DC has sparked an interesting question of team management, leadership and corporate team building here in NYC and beyond.

What do you think?