Folly #68: A Tale of Two Transitions
Replacing a beloved executive director doesn't have to be painful.
Executive director transitions have broad implications – for a nonprofit’s staff, as well as for funder relationships. I doubt any organization looks forward to this metamorphosis. The lens through which you look ahead makes a big difference in how painful or painfree the transition process is.
Here are two (real) tales …
(Not counting my own transition tale from Yosemite to Mt. Whitney in the bootsteps of John Muir. Great trip. Great to be back.)
Big vision. Baby steps.
I once worked in an organization that had a big-personality executive director (ED). We drank the Kool-Aid and, for the most part, it was delicious. Until it wasn’t. The ED had a powerful vision and a no-B.S. way of communicating it. You were on the bus getting to the destination, or your weren’t.
When that ED gave a few months’ notice and left, the organization struggled to find someone to file the empty shoes. Turns out, that departing ED – and that person’s singular vision – were irreplaceable.
This transition sought to preserve the beloved leader’s legacy by protecting new programs that the ED had launched.
A series of interim EDs helped keep things together. Ultimately, over several years, the organization did transition to a new leader – one who brought a different, and much needed, set of nuts-and-bolts skills to the growing organization. This was a transition that helped the nonprofit get back to basics and focus on operations of core programs.
It’s not what they set out to do, and it took a while to see what was most needed. In the end, it worked. But it was very painful.
Big shoes. New shoes.
Then I worked with an organization whose beloved founder was retiring. This ED anticipated the impact it would have on staff and funders. A multi-year effort began to:
Engage the board.
Communicate with staff.
Talk with funders.
Begin the search.
In that order.
The board created a subcommittee to lead the transition. Another committee (made up of board, community leaders, and fundraising and marketing consultants) discussed messaging to stakeholders.
Discussions included fears and hopes for what was ahead. Conversations illuminated opportunities to bring in younger leaders to help younger audiences connect with the program. The collective process fostered curiosity about how the program could look as it evolved, rather than confusing status quo with stability.
This transition allowed space to envision the best possible organization, including how programs might change to keep the mission relevant to a new generation.
There was no requirement that everything would “look the same” with a new leader.
Where do funders fit in?
The first process felt rough. The departing ED had built innovation and credibility for the nonprofit, and it felt uncertain whether stakeholders would see the transition as positive. So there were lots of updates sent to key funders, and meet-the-new-ED receptions with each transitional – and, ultimately, permanent – ED. Universally, funders were supportive, and they were well informed throughout the long process.
The second transition engaged a key funder beforehand, and requested a multi-year, significant funding increase to assist with transition expenses. The organization “thought big” as a result of this opportunity and leveraged an existing relationship to apply for big, unrestricted funding to bring in additional expertise. The grant budget and narrative gave shape to how the transition could look – in terms of building infrastructure to support the next phase of mission success under new leadership.
That evolved into a multi-year, detailed line-item budget showing how the organization could grow for maximum impact, both before the new ED came on board, and after. It presented a roadmap that captured the retiring ED’s knowledge and optimism, while making new destinations seem realistic. These budgets defined how the transition would benefit the community, and provided tools to share that story with donors in a compelling and confidence-inspiring way.
(Sound interesting? Download a multi-year budget template, as one of our free fundraising resources.)
So when the time comes for leadership transition – and it always comes – which kind of a nonprofit do you want be? And what funders will help you through that process?