Authors : Mayor Luk Lueth Dueny

Volume/Issue : Volume 11 - 2026, Issue 8 - August

Google Scholar : https://tinyurl.com/3amydt6r

Scribd : https://tinyurl.com/w796bark

DOI : https://doi.org/10.38124/ijisrt/26aug816

Note : A published paper may take 4-5 working days from the publication date to appear in PlumX Metrics, Semantic Scholar, and ResearchGate.

Abstract : This study examined the relationship between leadership succession planning and business continuity in corporate organisations operating within the fragile political and economic context of South Sudan. Using a qualitative multiple-case study approach, data were collected from six corporate organisations across manufacturing, banking, construction, logistics, energy, and consumer products sectors. The study explored how succession timelines, successor identification mechanisms, governance agreements, and organisational context shape continuity outcomes, measured through restoration period, survival period, and sustainability trajectory. The findings reveal that succession planning in fragile markets is a hybrid process influenced by both competence-based and relational-logics. Most organisations relied on trust, kinship, and political networks to select successors, which offered short-term operational protection but weakened long-term sustainability. Succession timelines were largely informal or reactive, resulting in delayed restoration after leadership exit. Governance documents lacked enforceable succession clauses, and shareholder or family dominance limited HR influence. External actors-donors, investors, and regulators-were found to be the strongest drivers of governance formalisation. The study contributes a contextualized succession-continuity model that integrates institutional theory, human capital perspectives, and political economy insights. It concludes that business continuity in fragile markets depends on a balance of competency development, relational legitimacy, institutional memory transfer, and enforceable governance mechanisms. Recommendations are proposed for corporate boards, HR departments, regulators, and international partners, with suggestions for future research.

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