There are many questions facing an Executive Director when considering departing their organization, such as:

• What will happen to the organization if I leave?
• Will the board be able to manage this transition and how much time and support will they need from me?
• How can I help staff with this transition?

Co-written by: Ed Rogan & Michelle Saddler
 
After the surge in COVID-19 cases earlier this year due to widely circulating variants, new case numbers have been falling steadily for weeks now, causing many states to lift restrictions. In most areas of the country restaurant customers are returning to in-person dining, students are back in the classroom, travelers are going on flights and cruises, sports fans are returning to stadiums at full capacity, and employees are returning to offices that had been vacated for almost two years. Despite this re-opening, the world is far from the way things used to be, and the work environment is no exception.

COVID-19 and the all the stress that surrounds it has made for a very uncertain time for many social service organizations. Lockdowns kept us from connecting with the people who count on our services. Many offices had to move to remote work plans. Fundraisers had to be reinvented as “virtual” or cancelled all together. We all know these and many more unsettling realities about our world since March of 2020.
 
In the beginning of all this, we prided ourselves on “pivoting” to be able to bridge and adapt to changing realities. Now we are sick and tired of pivoting. In reality, many of us are just…sick and tired.
 
Like our mothers always told us though (or at least mine did), there can be a silver lining if you are open to finding it. 

​THE WHEN & WHY OF INTERIM NONPROFIT LEADERSHIP
 
Have you noticed a trend lately of more nonprofit organizations hiring interim executive leaders after an Executive Director (ED)/CEO departs? Your eyes are not deceiving you! More and more nonprofit organizations are benefiting from bringing on an interim leader during a time of transition. While sometimes it makes perfect sense to hire a new Executive Director to take over from a departing ED, in many instances it can be advantageous to first bring on an Interim ED for a period of time.

The Valtas team has been incredibly fortunate to identify and hire a consulting team of Interim Executive Directors (IED) with a wide variety of backgrounds and experiences.  We are frequently asked what it takes to be a successful Interim Executive Director.

​There are many overlapping skills between someone who serves as an executive leader in a nonprofit and a consulting Interim ED or CEO.  There are also a few key differences between a regular Executive Director role and an IED.  Each nonprofit has some variability and nuance – different types of business models and program delivery, staff size, and funding complexity all impact the role of a nonprofit leader.