????最近，伯納爾多?希斯從漢堡快餐業(yè)轉(zhuǎn)到了調(diào)味料行業(yè)：宣布辭去漢堡王（Burger King）CEO職位，轉(zhuǎn)任亨氏（Heinz）CEO。在此之前，他曾擔(dān)任鐵路和物流公司América Latina Logística, S.A.的CEO。這3個職位的內(nèi)在聯(lián)系是：私有公司3G Capital在這三家公司都有投資。

????希斯與3G有長期的良好關(guān)系，在CEO接班問題上知根知底往往勝過激進(jìn)冒險。以百貨公司J.C. Penney為例，它已經(jīng)請回了前CEO邁克?烏爾曼；在維權(quán)投資者比爾?埃克曼安插羅恩?約翰遜掌權(quán)前，烏爾曼就是這家公司的CEO。約翰遜為這家風(fēng)雨飄搖的零售公司制訂的摘星計(jì)劃失敗后，4月8日他離職的消息被公布于眾。

????咨詢公司RHR International董事長兼CEO、高管更替專家托馬斯?薩博立多表示，通常而言，召回前CEO對一家公司可不是個好兆頭。當(dāng)然，他也承認(rèn)有一些例外，但召回老面孔一般都是管理失敗的表現(xiàn)。

????公司必須要認(rèn)真細(xì)致地對待接班計(jì)劃。至少，管理完善的公司是這樣做的。“如果你看到一家公司的董事會在CEO正常退休前約一年時間才開始探討這個問題，你基本上可以確定他們行動太遲了，”薩博立多說，有效的接班計(jì)劃通常在接班前三四年就已經(jīng)啟動了。

????當(dāng)然，投資者們都知道J.C. Penney身處困境，這一點(diǎn)無需從它召回前CEO一事中看出。這家零售商的股價截至上周五已較年初下跌26%。

????但對于像亨氏這樣并不需要扭轉(zhuǎn)局面的公司，引入一個投資者看好的經(jīng)理人意味著什么？2月份伯克希爾-哈撒韋公司（Berkshire Hathaway）宣布投資前，亨氏的股價近年來穩(wěn)步攀升。2009年年底，它的股價約為40美元，到2012年年底已升至60美元上下。當(dāng)然，在沃倫?巴菲特購入亨氏股份后，投資者認(rèn)為這對于亨氏是個好兆頭。當(dāng)時，巴菲特豎起大拇指，稱贊時任CEO的比爾?約翰遜。

????引入一位某些投資者熟悉、但不為公司所了解的人做CEO，不會干擾公司的管理策略嗎？會，但堅(jiān)持原有的管理策略不一定是最重要的。“接班計(jì)劃是計(jì)劃，不是協(xié)議，”高管獵頭公司W(wǎng)yatt & Jaffe總裁馬克?謝斐表示。

????引入投資者喜歡的經(jīng)理人存在的一大風(fēng)險是，那些認(rèn)為他們職業(yè)生涯將遭遇CEO職位天花板的精英或許會選擇離開這家公司。2000年，杰克?韋爾奇將通用電氣（GE）的CEO權(quán)杖交給杰夫?伊梅爾特后，兩位有力的競爭者吉姆?麥克納尼和鮑勃?納德利都決定出走。

????“難道這就是大型組織內(nèi)那種令人煩惱的搶椅子游戲？不錯，但誰能說，中層管理者就會覺得安全呢？”謝斐說。“而另一方面，公司確實(shí)需要讓大投資者安心，還有什么能比讓自己人掌權(quán)更能讓他們安心？”

????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?"