Come on we’ve all asked the question;

• How does Santa get around so many houses in one night?
• How does he get down those chimneys?
• Where does he find all those elves and reindeer?

Point one and two can only be described as the magic of Christmas, for point three I can only assume Santa uses a specialist interim recruitment consultancy based in the North Pole.

But, the question that is really on everybody’s lips this year is:

• How would we find Santa’s replacement?

Don’t worry kids! I am not suggesting for one moment that Santa isn’t going to be around for much longer, I am merely posing the question for future generations! Let’s look at some key points here:

• Santa is one of a kind.
• The Christmas management committee hasn’t thought of succession planning.
• With the whole world to search, where do we start?
• How do we pick somebody that is representative of all global communities?

It seems that finding a new Santa would be almost impossible, but the reality is we must have a replacement! First we must understand what it is we want and break it down to the detail:

• What core skills, attributes and personality traits does Santa need?
• What is his work environment like and what type of leader is needed to deliver a successful Christmas?
• What is it that made the current Santa so successful?
• Where else can we find somebody like this?

Finding a new Santa won’t be easy; it will take weeks of research to provide detailed analysis that will deliver the platform to identify the potential leaders for this high-profile role. Advertising for this role will be costly and probably fruitless as the potential candidate may not know they are the best person for the job and so won’t be actively seeking the role.  Making a lot of noise, shouting about the position is also going to negatively affect the decision-making process, as the elves and reindeer, as well as the public, will want their say in the matter. This will elongate the process and possibly cause conflict among the workers and general public.

So, how do we find Santa’s replacement?

With hard work, dedication and the commitment to find the unobtainable, and when we finally have them, to share with them the dream of Christmas!