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These past two months have been a sad time for Denver Bronco fans and for all of us following the tragic deaths of two young promising Bronco players. Both players were considered to be key components of the growth and future success of the Denver franchise and will be missed. This weekend, as I opened the paper and reflected on this latest tragedy I couldn't help but wonder what was in store long-term for the Bronco franchise. How will they regroup as a team? Will they fight harder, struggle, or never miss a beat? Can they fill the shoes of Darrent Williams at corner or Damien Nash in the backfield?

While I recognize that the tragic death of an elite athlete is not the same as losing a key employee, we often find management teams with huge talent and age gaps in their organization. This is especially true in professional services, in which entire generations of employees are lost for a variety of reasons (e.g. a downturn can cause an organization to stop recruiting or be faced with layoffs). In certain cases it reflects management's inability to motivate and retain employees, while in others it may well be external factors. When analyzing the breadth and depth of management teams and their long-term impact on value, we have to consider the expected tenure and skill sets of the organization and its competitors. In a weird way, we look at the future and value in the same way a professional sports franchise may when they are forced to wonder who is going to fill whose shoes and when. All organizations need to plan for change and development of team members, just like the Broncos have to now.

Category(s): Valuation Thoughts
Posted by Brett Suchor at 08:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)