Enhancing Succession Planning
with Social Network Analysis

Choosing the Right Leader

A growing healthcare organization found itself at a crossroads after decades of success under its founder’s leadership. Following expansion to multiple locations across several states, the company sought to replace its founding CEO with one who could guide it through its next phase of growth.

Succession planning is one of the most critical and complex challenges businesses face. Selecting the right leader requires more than evaluating qualifications—it’s about ensuring they fit seamlessly into your company culture and inspire trust across teams. Social Network Analysis (SNA) provides an advantage, uncovering hidden dynamics of trust, influence, and collaboration to complement traditional hiring methods and ensure a smooth transition.

The challenge wasn’t just finding a leader with the right business or medical expertise—it was finding someone who could navigate the complexities of the company’s culture, earn trust from employees, and connect with diverse stakeholders. The new CEO would need to drive change while preserving the organization’s high standards of care and collaborative environment.

To make the best decision, the Board realized they needed more than résumés and interviews. We partnered with the organization for a deeper understanding of how each candidate would integrate into the organization and lead effectively.

Complementing Traditional
Search Methods

SNA maps the informal networks within an organization—how trust, influence, and credibility flow among individuals. These hidden dynamics often determine whether leaders can inspire confidence and build relationships that drive success.

For example, SNA can reveal the candidates that employees turn to for advice or rely on for collaboration, helping the Board identify those with the strongest connections to influential individuals across the organization. This insight is particularly valuable in complex environments where informal relationships often matter more than formal hierarchies.

By analyzing these dynamics, SNA identifies traits such as trust, likability, and credibility, which are essential for effective leadership. Combined with traditional interviews and assessments, SNA provides a comprehensive view of a candidate’s potential to lead.

A More Informed Decision

Using SNA, we partnered with the company to assess candidates on their ability to build trust, navigate relationships, and influence others. These insights revealed how candidates were viewed by employees and stakeholders, enabling the Board to make a data-driven decision.

The chosen CEO was not only highly qualified but also deeply respected within the organization’s informal networks. This allowed the new leader to hit the ground running, gaining the trust and cooperation needed to drive the company’s rapid expansion while maintaining its culture of care and collaboration.

Since the transition, the company has continued its exponential growth—opening sites in new states, seamlessly scaling operations, and enhancing the high standards that made it a success.

Building Stronger Leaders
and Sustainable Growth

Navigating leadership transitions is one of the most sensitive and critical moments for any organization. By leveraging SNA to uncover hidden dynamics of trust and influence, businesses can identify candidates who fit their culture, foster smoother transitions, and drive lasting growth.

For organizations looking to drive meaningful change, this approach delivers:

• Enhance Leadership Impact: Target candidates with the right cultural fit to quickly establish trust, align teams around and reduce friction.

• Ensuring Seamless Transitions: Maintain stability by identifying trusted influencers who ease leadership changes.

• Strengthening Organizational Culture: Preserve core values and foster collaboration by promoting individuals who embody and advocate your organization’s culture.

At 3Fold Collective, we don’t just uncover hidden dynamics—we transform them into actionable strategies. Whether you’re navigating a leadership transition or developing future leaders, our expertise in SNA ensures seamless transitions, sustained growth, and a resilient culture. Let us help you unlock the full potential of your organization and secure its future.