Succession Planning: Why I Cried on Stage as CEO

I cried on stage this week, in front of thousands of people. In front of the entire industry. The press in the room wrote about it. I couldn't believe it.

Some people will tell you it isn't becoming for a CEO to cry in public, much less in front of the entire industry. They'll tell you it isn't good executive presence.

So let me explain what happened in Atlanta last week.

Let's get into it.

.. or listen to the podcast ...

On the Main Stage in Atlanta

Last Tuesday I was in Atlanta for our SCTE TechExpo, on the main stage for the opening session. Three of us were on stage: Chris Winfrey, chairman of the CableLabs board and chairman and CEO of Charter Communications; Mark Bridges, who takes over as CEO of CableLabs in January; and me.

Let me give you a little context on how I got to this point of being on stage.

I was previously the CTO at HP, and I left at the end of 2011 thinking I was retiring. A week later, CableLabs called. Over the next five months, retiring turned into moving to Colorado to run CableLabs.

I didn't come from cable. That wasn't my background. I'm grateful the board took a chance on an outsider, and glad I said yes when I wasn't sure what I was jumping into. Its now 14 years later and I'm retiring for the third time.

The last two times I retired, from Teligent after the IPO and from HP, the next role came looking for me. This time, if anyone comes looking, I'll tell you right now: the answer is no.

Innovation Is a Team Sport

I've said this many times, here on the show and in the innovation boot camp courses I teach. Innovation is a team sport. That means the CableLabs team, the operators who fund the research lab, and our vendor partners. We could not have achieved our success without that community and the effort of everybody in it.

Some of the articles are highlighting things that happened over my fourteen years, but none of it happened because of one person.

This is by far the best job I have ever had, bar none. That's also why it is so hard to step away.

That's what hit me on stage. It felt like I was saying goodbye to an industry and a CableLabs team I've been part of for fourteen years. Then I looked over and saw my grandson in the front row.

Good Succession Plans Take Time

I never wanted to be the leader gripping the desk, where someone has to pry his fingers off and push him out the door. I wanted to make the transition when I felt my successor was ready.

Good transitions are not single events. It isn't the press release where you announce the new person and ride off into the sunset. A good succession plan is deliberate, and it takes time. Ours started 18 months ago, with me talking to the board of directors about my personal intent and about who I felt was ready.

At CableLabs, we run a world-class succession process. For the last eight years, we've met with the board once a year and reviewed successors for every executive function at CableLabs. So the board knew our bench, how deep it was, and our plan to prepare people to step up into the next role.

Mark Bridges is my successor as CableLabs CEO, and he is absolutely the right guy. He's been with CableLabs longer than I have - 16 years - and we've worked as a team for a decade. He's been our CTO for the last three years, and on August 1, he became president. He knows the organization and the CEOs of all our member companies. The board is unanimously united behind him, and so am I.

I'm handing off roles and functions as we go, so that on January 1 he takes over the CEO title. I've also committed to both the board and Mark that I'll stay available to advise them throughout 2027 if they need me.

Who Is Ready to Step In for You?

Let me ask you a question. 

If you left your role in 90 days, who is ready to step in and take on your function?

If you think holding on to information makes you harder to replace, you're thinking it wrong. Strong leaders plan for their succession. You may have to leave for a medical reason or a family reason. Either way, you do not want to leave your organization in the lurch. So, who is ready? If you don't have anybody, start working on it now.

The other questions:

Which relationships exist only in your head or on your phone?

Are you hoarding them, or are you sharing them with the person you've identified as your successor?

If you want to be remembered as a model leader long after your career, leave the organization stronger than you found it, and hand it to somebody ready to take it further.

Why Now?

The question everybody asks is, why now, Phil? Why retire now?

Age is part of it. I'm 66. But the real reason is my grandkids. I have five, ages 10 to 14, and I want to go do things with them. The oldest leaves for college in a handful of years, and I know how fast that clock runs. My 14 years at CableLabs flew by, and the years are going even faster now. I want to spend the time I have left with them.

What's Next

What I'm committing myself to is building the next generation of innovators. The YouTube channel and the podcast are staying. That's my investment in innovators out in the world. I'm also making that investment at home, in my grandkids.

I have two book projects underway: one on critical thinking and one on innovation. The first four chapters of the critical thinking book are available to paid subscribers over on our Substack channel.

I'm not disappearing. I'll still be here regularly doing shows. I may take a break here and there, depending on what my grandkids are up to. But I'll be on the YouTube channel, putting out the podcast, and writing on the blog.

Liam on the Show Floor

Atlanta had a unique twist. I brought one of my grandkids with me: Liam, my second oldest, who is 13. I brought him to Expo to show people what was driving my decision, and he spent the entire week at the show.

Liam is outgoing and personable. He isn't shy, and he engages with adults all the time. He went around to the booths, and many vendors on the show floor came up to tell me the hardest questions they'd ever been asked came from my grandson. Questions like:

• What's your product about?
• How does it work? Can I see how it works?
• Who are your competitors, and how are you different from them?
• What problem are you trying to solve for your customer?

I was sitting back chuckling. Liam watches every episode of this show on YouTube, and he drills me on the details and the background over our Sunday family lunches. Somewhere in those conversations, he learned the power of a good question. At Expo, he put it to work, using questions to engage the people in the booths and learn from them.

He made an impression on many people. Chris Winfrey commented on how impressive Liam was when they met: a firm handshake and good eye contact.

I'll admit my bias here. All five of my grandkids are pretty great, and I'm excited for January, when I get to devote my time to them.

What Is Your Legacy?

I want to use all of this talk of succession to help you think something through.

What is your legacy? Do you think it's your career and the products you introduced? Who will talk about you two generations from now?

My grandfather taught me to ride horses during our summer visits to Kentucky. He instilled in me the saying, "A job worth doing is worth doing right." He died when I was 7, far too young, and I still think about what else I could have learned from him.

I came to a realization while telling my grandkids stories about him. I am my grandfather's legacy. I tell them about the impact he had on my life, and I want to be that for them. My grandkids are my legacy. I don't want them to have the same regret I do.

So what are you building that someone else can take further? It might be your grandkids. It might be the person who will succeed you in your job, whether you have to leave or you decide to retire. Think it through. Don't wait and don't let things just happen.