老掌门回归是福是祸？

    最近，伯纳尔多•希斯从汉堡快餐业转到了调味料行业：宣布辞去汉堡王（Burger King）CEO职位，转任亨氏（Heinz）CEO。在此之前，他曾担任铁路和物流公司América Latina Logística, S.A.的CEO。这3个职位的内在联系是：私有公司3G Capital在这三家公司都有投资。

    希斯与3G有长期的良好关系，在CEO接班问题上知根知底往往胜过激进冒险。以百货公司J.C. Penney为例，它已经请回了前CEO迈克•乌尔曼；在维权投资者比尔•埃克曼安插罗恩•约翰逊掌权前，乌尔曼就是这家公司的CEO。约翰逊为这家风雨飘摇的零售公司制订的摘星计划失败后，4月8日他离职的消息被公布于众。

    咨询公司RHR International董事长兼CEO、高管更替专家托马斯•萨博立多表示，通常而言，召回前CEO对一家公司可不是个好兆头。当然，他也承认有一些例外，但召回老面孔一般都是管理失败的表现。

    公司必须要认真细致地对待接班计划。至少，管理完善的公司是这样做的。“如果你看到一家公司的董事会在CEO正常退休前约一年时间才开始探讨这个问题，你基本上可以确定他们行动太迟了，”萨博立多说，有效的接班计划通常在接班前三四年就已经启动了。

    当然，投资者们都知道J.C. Penney身处困境，这一点无需从它召回前CEO一事中看出。这家零售商的股价截至上周五已较年初下跌26%。

    但对于像亨氏这样并不需要扭转局面的公司，引入一个投资者看好的经理人意味着什么？2月份伯克希尔-哈撒韦公司（Berkshire Hathaway）宣布投资前，亨氏的股价近年来稳步攀升。2009年年底，它的股价约为40美元，到2012年年底已升至60美元上下。当然，在沃伦•巴菲特购入亨氏股份后，投资者认为这对于亨氏是个好兆头。当时，巴菲特竖起大拇指，称赞时任CEO的比尔•约翰逊。

    引入一位某些投资者熟悉、但不为公司所了解的人做CEO，不会干扰公司的管理策略吗？会，但坚持原有的管理策略不一定是最重要的。“接班计划是计划，不是协议，”高管猎头公司Wyatt & Jaffe总裁马克•谢斐表示。

    引入投资者喜欢的经理人存在的一大风险是，那些认为他们职业生涯将遭遇CEO职位天花板的精英或许会选择离开这家公司。2000年，杰克•韦尔奇将通用电气（GE）的CEO权杖交给杰夫•伊梅尔特后，两位有力的竞争者吉姆•麦克纳尼和鲍勃•纳德利都决定出走。

    “难道这就是大型组织内那种令人烦恼的抢椅子游戏？不错，但谁能说，中层管理者就会觉得安全呢？”谢斐说。“而另一方面，公司确实需要让大投资者安心，还有什么能比让自己人掌权更能让他们安心？”

    Last week, Bernardo Hees moved from burgers to condiments, announcing that he would leave his job as CEO of Burger King (BKW) to CEO of Heinz (HNZ). Before that, he was CEO of railroad and logistics company América Latina Logística, S.A. The common thread between all three positions is 3G Capital, a private firm that has invested in those companies.

    Hees has a long relationship with 3G, and familiarity often trumps boldness when it comes to CEO succession. Take J.C. Penney (JCP), which brought back Mike Ullman, who had been CEO before activist investor Bill Ackman put Ron Johnson in power. Johnson's reach-for-the stars plan for the struggling retailer failed, and his departure was announced on April 8.

    In general, putting an old CEO back in power is a bad sign for a company, argues succession expert Thomas Saporito, who is chairman and CEO of consulting firm RHR International. Of course, there are exceptions, he admits, but calling back a familiar face is generally a reflection of management failure.

    That's because companies work meticulously on their succession plans. At least, well-managed ones do. "If you see a board starting to tackle the question of CEO succession about a year out from normal retirement, you can almost be sure that they are way behind the curve," Saporito says, adding that effective succession plans generally kick in about three or four years before a transition takes place.

    Of course, investors knew J.C. Penney was in trouble, even without reading into the decision to bring back a former CEO. Shares of the retailer, as of this past Friday, were down 26% year-to-date.

    But what does bringing in an investor favorite mean for a company like Heinz, which didn't necessarily need a turnaround? Even before Berkshire Hathaway (BRKA) announced its investment in the company in February, Heinz's share price had been steadily improving. One share cost roughly $40 around the end of 2009, and around $60 at the end of 2012. Of course, investors considered it a good sign for Heinz when Warren Buffett bought a stake in the company. At that time, Buffett gave then-CEO Bill Johnson a thumbs up.

    Doesn't bringing in a person who is known to certain investors but unknown to the company disrupt the company's management strategy? Yes, but holding to that strategy is not necessarily a priority. "Succession plans are exactly that: plans, not covenants," says Mark Jaffe, president of executive search firm Wyatt & Jaffe.

    One major risk of going with an investor favorite is that talented people who saw their careers topping out at CEO might leave the company. In 2000, the two runners up for CEO of GE (GE) -- Jim McNerney and Bob Nardelli -- bolted when Jack Welch passed the torch to Jeff Immelt.

    "Is that kind of musical chairs game confusing for the larger organization? Well sure, but who says that middle management is supposed to feel secure?" Jaffe says. "Large investors, on the other hand, are the real constituents who need to discharge their anxiety at all times, and what's more comforting than having 'one of their own' at the helm?"