Navigating Leadership Transitions

The riskiest part of a track relay is the baton hand off. The same could be said for the changeover between leaders. As fundraising consultants, this surfaces as a challenge because donors’ confidence in an organization—and their willingness to invest in it—is often tied to their faith in the organization’s leadership. Consequently, succession planning is a key element of positioning nonprofits for fundraising success.

I recently had the opportunity to moderate a discussion on this topic for the Association of African American Museums Conference. In this situation, it was succession planning with a twist—the nuances involved when the current leader is following the organization’s founder. One of the most interesting exchanges was about balancing being visionary with staying true to the entity’s original vision. The reality is there are pain points when you’re trying to honor the initial vision while also evolving to maintain relevance. It takes humility and collaboration in addition to frequent and open dialogue to navigate this smoothly.

Whatever the scenario, there is one thing that all organizations can benefit from in a succession planning process: time. If you don’t have a succession plan in place for key roles (staff or volunteer), start the conversation and consider these initial steps:

• Update the job description to ensure it captures the current role
• Assess possible known successors
• Identify knowledge loss risks and make plans to capture the information through additional redundancies and/or documentation
• Develop an emergency transition plan if key leaders are not able to serve or leave with little notice

While donors may feel apprehension with the uncertainty that comes with a new leader, this transition can also be energizing. It’s an opportunity to evolve the organization with fresh perspective, passion, and vision for the future. I can’t help but think of the conservation sector which is undergoing wide sweeping change with top leadership transitions occurring at six of the largest nonprofits focused on environmental issues. Many of us have a heightened awareness for climate change and I am excited about the promise this new leadership brings. Change is never easy, but when done thoughtfully and strategically your organization will be well positioned for its next leg of the race.