You are browsing: Executive Director
None of Us is Getting Out Alive: A Guide to Executive Succession Planning
The work you do now to plan for executive succession could mean the difference between whether your organization withers or thrives later.
Reproducing Reproducers: Creating a Legacy of Leadership Succession
Nature teaches us that fruit is naturally reproduced through the seeds of more fruit within itself. Those seeds continue to reproduce more fruit trees which produce more seeds—on and on the cycle of natural reproduction goes.
Passion Meets Professionalism: Transitioning from Volunteer Leaders to Paid Staff
Imagine executives from the six largest school meal programs in the country, sitting around a table discussing how, together, they could make a difference in school food. By leveraging their buying power, they can change the industry. They decide to be …
Strategic Planning 101 for Nonprofits: Strengthen a Nonprofit’s Board-Executive Director Relationship
When I talk to nonprofit leaders about strategic planning, they often voice some of the obvious benefits of aligning teams around organizational identity (mission, vision) and organizational priorities (goals). In contrast, they rarely voice a benefit …
How to Cure Founder’s Syndrome
Founders—the people who create nonprofits—are remarkable. They miss sleep to build websites, skip lunch to meet with potential donors or partners, and do whatever it takes to turn their dreams of a better world into reality, creating an organization in …
Successfully Navigating an Executive Director Transition
Children’s Fairyland is the nation’s first storybook theme park; definitely not your typical nonprofit. So maybe I shouldn’t have been surprised when the park’s executive director said to me, her replacement, as she handed over the keys to the kingdom, …
How to Hire Great Nonprofit Leaders
We’re all familiar with great leaders. From popular culture to UN council meetings, to articles about CEO’s, images are emblazoned in our minds. They are great champions on the big screen, in the boardroom, and in the oval o …
Readers’ Thoughts: Secrets to Successful Succession
In the article “Whose Nonprofit Is It Anyway?” we included a survey to gather reader’s thoughts about the challenging topic of transitioning from a founder to new leadership. After taking time to collect and digest the results, here we report back on t …
Managing Big Change: Top Tips for New Executive Directors & CEOs
Congratulations! You’re a new CEO at a nonprofit or social enterprise hired to increase impact. Whether your organization is small, medium, or large, many of the obstacles you’ll have to navigate are the same. In this article, find out the steps you ca …
The Best Way To Put Clients First Is To Let Them Lead!
Those of us who work at nonprofits are drawn to a particular mission and a desire to do good and give back. Most of us have navigated our careers thoughtfully and intentionally and have worked hard (perhaps even tirelessly). Yet often, despite our good …
