This scenario plays out repeatedly among accomplished women executives. The same strategic foresight they apply to business decisions is often absent when planning their personal transitions. At The Catalytic Collective, we call this the “Five-Year Vision Gap”—the critical planning period that many executives overlook until they’re already in transition.
The Pattern of Delayed Planning
The data tells a compelling story. In our work with senior women executives, we’ve found that while 82% had detailed succession plans for their organizations, only 24% had developed concrete plans for their own next chapter prior to announcing their transition. Most began serious consideration of their future direction within 6–12 months of their departure—far too late for optimal positioning.
This planning asymmetry creates unnecessary risk and missed opportunity. The executives who navigate transitions most successfully typically begin envisioning and preparing for their next chapter 3–5 years before they intend to make a move—hence the Five-Year Vision Gap.
Why the Gap Exists
Several factors contribute to this planning disparity among even the most forward-thinking executives:
- Identity Integration: For many accomplished executives, professional identity becomes so thoroughly integrated with self-concept that imagining life beyond their current role feels almost existentially challenging.
- Success Momentum: The very achievements that create options for your next chapter can paradoxically make it harder to step away and reconsider direction.
- Loyalty Constraints: Many women executives, particularly those who have broken barriers or mentored others, feel a responsibility to their organizations, teams, and the women who will follow them.
- Perfection Paralysis: The ambiguity of transition can trigger the reluctance to plan until you can see the perfect next step—which rarely appears without deliberate exploration.
- Time Compression: The demands of executive roles crowd out the important but less time-sensitive work of envisioning your future.
The Cost of Delayed Planning
Waiting until transition is imminent to begin planning your next chapter carries significant costs:
- Reactive vs. Strategic Positioning: Without advance planning, executives often respond to whatever opportunities happen to present themselves, rather than strategically positioning for aligned roles.
- Network Atrophy: The networks most valuable for your next chapter may differ from those you’ve cultivated in your current role.
- Credential Gaps: Board positions, academic appointments, or entrepreneurial ventures often require credentials or experiences beyond executive leadership.
- Market Positioning: How you’re perceived in the market becomes increasingly difficult to reshape under the spotlight of an announced transition.
- Opportunity Development: The most fulfilling next chapters often don’t exist as ready-made opportunities but must be developed over time through relationship building, market testing, and careful positioning.
The Five-Year Vision Framework
The most successful transitions we’ve observed follow a deliberate framework that begins well before any public announcement of change:
Years 5–3 Before Transition: Exploration Without Commitment
This initial phase focuses on expanding possibilities rather than narrowing them. Activities during this period might include:
- Systematic exploration of industries, roles, and opportunities that intrigue you
- Strategic expansion of your network beyond your current industry or function
- Experimentation with different types of impact through board work, advisory roles, or community engagement
- Deep reflection on personal values and how they might be expressed in your next chapter
“I started serving on a nonprofit board completely unrelated to my industry four years before I planned to step down as CEO,” explains Margaret, now running a successful education foundation. “What began as personal interest evolved into the testing ground for my next chapter. Without that extended runway, I would never have discovered my passion for education transformation.”
Years 3–2 Before Transition: Focused Development
As possibilities clarify into preferences, this period focuses on deliberate capability and credential building:
- Targeted relationship development in areas of interest
- Strategic acquisition of credentials or experiences that will be valuable in potential next roles
- Careful testing of potential directions through advisory work, speaking engagements, or writing
- Preliminary exploration of specific opportunities while maintaining focus on current responsibilities
“Two years before I left my CFO role, I began writing thought leadership pieces on sustainable finance,” shares Elizabeth, who now leads an impact investment firm. “This wasn’t about looking for my next job; it was about establishing expertise and relationships in an area I was genuinely passionate about. When I was ready to make the move, I had already built credibility in this space.”
Years 2–1 Before Transition: Strategic Positioning
As the transition horizon approaches, focus shifts to more deliberate market positioning:
- Careful curation of your public professional narrative
- More direct exploration of specific opportunities
- Development of your transition announcement strategy
- Alignment of personal and financial resources to support your transition
The Catalytic Collective is a dynamic community where accomplished women leaders transform decades of expertise into bold new horizons, creating lasting impact through shared wisdom.
Join us at The Catalytic Collective’s Leadership Salon: “The Five-Year Vision,” where we’ll explore strategic approaches to planning your next chapter before you need it, creating intentional pathways to your most fulfilling future. Limited to 12 participants.
To learn more about our Leadership Salons and upcoming opportunities to engage with peers who understand your journey, visit our Events page or contact our membership team.