Succession Planning for Nonprofits

There are three types of succession in any business or nonprofit organization; planned, unplanned, or assumed. This series of posts explore the three types to shed a spotlight on one of the most important aspects of your business plan or nonprofit organization. Let’s start with “planned succession.”

For most nonprofits, trade associations or chambers, there is a hierarchy of leadership. The Board of Directors (and their positions), the chief staff officer (paid executive) and subsequent staff positions are delineated in either the bylaws or a policy manual. However, the National Council of Nonprofits reports that only 27 percent of organizations surveyed have a written succession plan in place. A solid succession plan ought to be part of your policy manual and not your bylaws, as it could be changed over time to reflect the will of the leadership.

Scenario #1 – The board chair’s term is expiring. Does the vice chair automatically assume the top spot? Does the board select a new chair from within? Is there an open call from membership for a new board chair?

Scenario #2 – The chief paid staff officer announces her/his retirement in 3, 6, or 9 months. What does your succession plan say about replacement? Will there be a full blown review of the position, duties, compensation and benefits? Will the board spend resources on an executive search firm or consultant, or just advertise “internally and locally?” What about hiring an interim chief executive who guides the organization while the search is conducted?

The key takeaway is these are planned succession events. The organization knows about the impending vacancy and has time to react. It behooves nonprofit boards to adopt a succession policy in advance. Having those internal leadership discussions beforehand to condense those decisions in the policy manual, creates confidence with the membership.
The last thing a board or their membership needs is to wake up one day and wonder, ‘who’s going to fill their shoes?’