When a key executive announces their departure, a company’s first reaction is typically to initiate a succession search. The board or CEO defines the role, an executive search firm begins its work, and the organization waits for a new leader.
However, filling the vacant position is only part of the problem.
At the same time, one should ask what happens to the unfinished projects under the departing leader’s responsibility. Who will lead them during the recruitment process? Who will make the decisions? Who will ensure that the transformation program does not lose momentum precisely when the organization is already in an uncertain situation?
HSBC banking group’s recent CFO transition offers an interesting example of this.
A CFO’s departure involves more than just one job title
HSBC announced in September 2026 that group CFO Pam Kaur will leave her position by spring 2027 at the latest. The bank’s board has initiated a succession search and is evaluating both internal and external candidates, according to Reuters.
However, this is not a typical CFO transition.
Kaur has been one of CEO Georges Elhedery’s most important partners in HSBC’s extensive restructuring. The bank has been divided into eastern and western organizations, operations have been simplified, costs have been cut, and business units have been sold. Kaur’s role has therefore included, in addition to traditional financial management, central responsibility for the entire group’s transformation.
HSBC has addressed the situation in two parallel ways. The search for a permanent successor has been initiated, but Kaur is also expected to continue after leaving her position as an advisor to the CEO on strategic projects. This ensures that the continuity of unfinished reforms does not rest entirely on the new CFO. (Reuters, 10 September 2026)
The solution raises a question that receives too little attention in many leadership transitions:
When a key executive leaves in the middle of a transformation, are you looking for a permanent functional leader or someone who can also complete the unfinished change?
These are not always the same person.
Recruitment and change continuity are two separate decisions
Recruiting a new leader easily takes several months. After that come the notice period, onboarding, and the time needed to understand the organization, business, and ongoing projects.
Even if the process proceeds as planned, a considerable period can form between the vacant position and the new leader’s full operational capability.
During this time, a company can attempt to manage in three ways.
The first option is to distribute the departing leader’s responsibilities among other executive team members. This appears efficient on paper but quickly increases workload. Already fully employed executives must handle, in addition to their own role, for example a transformation program, integration, system renewal, or profitability project.
The second option is to put some projects on hold until the new leader arrives. This may feel safe, but the costs of delay can be significant. The market, customers, and competitors will not wait for recruitment to be completed.
The third option is to bring an experienced interim manager into the organization who takes responsibility for a defined period for either the vacant position, the unfinished transformation, or both. This allows sufficient time for selecting a permanent successor without halting business development.
In HSBC’s case, continuity is secured through an advisory role. In many Finnish companies, a comparable solution could be an interim CFO, transformation director, integration manager, or PMO lead.
Economic growth intensifies competition for talented leaders
The question is particularly timely in Finland right now, as a clear turn for the better is visible in the economy.
Differences remain in growth forecasts, and uncertainty has not disappeared. The Bank of Finland predicts the economy will grow 0.7 percent in 2026, 1.2 percent in 2027, and 1.4 percent in 2028. According to the same forecast, however, Finland’s economy is on the threshold of stronger growth. (Bank of Finland, 12 June 2026). More recent bank forecasts have been considerably more optimistic. Danske Bank raised its 2026 growth forecast to 1.8 percent in September. OP also estimates that average growth for 2026–2027 will be the strongest since 2017–2018.
If economic growth strengthens as forecasts predict, companies will launch investments, growth projects, and long-postponed recruitments. At the same time, the number of executive searches will likely increase as well.
When companies begin competing again for the best leaders, each successful executive search often creates a new vacant position in another organization. The recruited leader moves to a new company, but their former employer is left to resolve the resulting leadership gap.
Thus growth creates a chain reaction.
A vacant position can be left unfilled – but the work cannot be left undone
During a weak economic cycle, companies have learned to function with smaller organizations. When a leader leaves, the first thought may be not to fill the position at all. Responsibilities are distributed to others, the organization is flattened, and costs are saved.
The solution may be correct if the position has genuinely lost its significance or responsibilities can be reorganized.
The problem arises when the job title is eliminated but the responsibilities it contained remain.
Who is responsible for implementing the growth strategy? Who leads internationalization? Who builds the new commercial operating model? Who carries through the ERP renewal, post-acquisition integration, or procurement optimization? Who ensures financial management as growth ties up more working capital?
A company can leave a position unfilled, but it cannot safely leave business-critical responsibilities unattended.
In an upswing, this becomes particularly dangerous. In a slow market, a delay of a few months may not be immediately visible. In accelerating growth, the same delay can mean lost customers, delayed investments, a supply chain that scales too slowly, or a competitor capturing the market first.
A leadership gap is therefore not just a personnel issue. It is a growth risk.
Permanent successor or interim executor?
When a key executive departs, the board and CEO should separate three questions:
- Is the same permanent position needed in the future as well?
- Which of the departing leader’s responsibilities cannot wait for recruitment to be completed?
- Is different expertise needed for the interim phase than for the permanent position?
If a company is, for example, in the middle of an integration, reorganization, or profitability program, an interim manager’s most important task may be to bring the change to a controlled conclusion. A permanent successor can then be selected to lead the post-change organization.
Sometimes the interim phase also helps redefine the permanent position. Over a few months, it becomes clear what kind of leadership the new strategy truly requires. This reduces the risk of a wrong hire and gives the board more information for the final selection.
Prepare for growth before the leadership gap emerges
Strengthening economic growth is good news for Finnish companies. At the same time, it increases competition for experienced leaders and raises the number of leadership transitions.
Therefore, companies should not wait until the moment when a key person announces their departure.
It is important for the board and executive team to identify in advance:
- Which leadership positions are critical for business continuity?
- Which strategic projects depend on a single person?
- Who could assume interim responsibility?
- When is an external interim manager needed?
- Which projects cannot be paused even for a few months?
The HSBC case demonstrates that recruiting a permanent successor and ensuring continuity of an unfinished transformation should be addressed separately.
For Finnish companies, the message is simple: when growth begins and executive searches increase, leadership gaps emerge quickly even in well-managed companies. A vacant position can sometimes be left unfilled. Growth management cannot.
Cherry Group helps companies quickly find an experienced interim manager to secure business continuity, lead unfinished change, or build a bridge to a permanent successor’s start.
