Organizational Development

Every organization will eventually experience a change in executive leadership, which is a time of both risk and opportunity. Nonprofit organizations can adapt this executive director succession policy example to create their own succession policy (Raffa, formerly TransitionGuides).

Practice Note

Sample Emergency Succession Plan by Tim Wolfred gives a model plan with emphasis on "identifying the key leadership functions carried by the executive, identifying the agency managers best qualified to step into the executive role in an emergency, and prescribing the cross-training necessary to prepare the back-up managers to cover the leadership functions." (CompassPoint Nonprofit Services,

Nonprofit executive directors often wonder if it's the right time to leave. Maybe the demands of the job seem ever more burdensome, or the board seems increasingly dissatisfied, or the ticking of the retirement clock is getting louder.

Common sense, an inclusive listening tour, frank dialogue, and more are essential ingredients for the process of succession. Examples of unspoken challenges are revealed in Successful Successions: Executive Transitions that Worked, stories of Nonprofit Quarterly's experience recruiting chief executives and their successors for three different organizations.

This article explores succession planning for nonprofit leaders other than the CEO. Eureka moments often occur during our consulting engagements when nonprofit teams realize the CEO is one of many individuals whose departure could cause ‘transition trauma.’ Read on for inspiration for establishing a non-CEO succession planning process. (Nonprofit Risk Management Center)

Here are a number of helpful resources from the National Council of Nonprofits to help with your succession planning efforts. 

In most cases a graceful exit, in which the founder leaves the organization completely, is the most appropriate way for an organization to manage the transition from a long-time or founding chief executive. However, the conventional wisdom about founder transitions has taken on the character of an absolute rule.

Check out this collection of resources on telecommuting including sample policies and things to consider and should be addressed before implementing a policy at your organization. (North Carolina Telework)

Leaders are often in denial about when their effectiveness is losing its edge and when is the appropriate time to leave. "The Importance of Linking Leadership Succession, Strategy, and Governance" offers an overview of the challenges and three common dilemmas in leadership succession. (Nonprofit Quarterly)