How to Get Ready to Leave your Leadership Role

Earlier this year our team wrote an article on leaving an Executive Director role. The response we got was that our readers wanted more, specifically in the way of additional resources that spelled out the step-by-step actions they should take to plan for their upcoming retirement or departure. So, we’re doing just that! 

Paper airplanes flying in one direction, except one that is turning a different direction.

The article below from Liz Swanson expands on that topic, drawing from a workshop she recently led to help provide a framework on how to leave your leadership role. Get ready to enjoy her insights!

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A question for you: Imagine tomorrow you go into the office and announce you are retiring in 4 weeks. What is the biggest issue your board must consider?

If you identified a key issue immediately, that’s great (and even better if you have a plan to address it)! For many nonprofit executives, the answer may not come so quickly.

Recently, I posed this same question to a group of Executive Directors. They identified issues like knowledge transfer, hiring a new ED, or ensuring support for their team. As we talked more, more issues came up. It became clear that addressing the challenges they discussed felt overwhelming, which was the primary deterrent to them leaving the role. Fundamentally, they knew they wanted to leave, but clarity about why, what, and how were allusive. So, we spent time talking and workshopping to bring clarity and framework to leaving their role with professionalism and care.

Understanding Why Thorough Planning is Critical
Why plan to leave your leadership position? Because it’s about ensuring you do right by yourself and right by your organization and the community you serve. Ultimately, how you leave is about your identity and integrity. Your attitude and behavior as you move forward from your organization is what people will tend to remember about you during your tenure. (That’s not to say that all the great work you did in the prior years and months don’t count, but human nature being what it is recency bias can set in during those closing days.) A thought-out plan will speak volumes about you and your care for the organization to those who stay and follow after you leave.

How to Build a Readiness Map
To overcome the hurdle of preparation uncertainty, you start by completing your “Get Ready to Leave Readiness Map.”

The Readiness Map is a living document that helps you reflect on your why, what, and how to leave your position and to organize these reflections into a plan so that you, your organization, and your community are better prepared for when you leave. The map won’t consider every possible scenario that may occur as you roll-out your plan but will be an ongoing guide when those left field activities arise. And unlike a traditional succession plan that looks at departures from an organizational perspective, the map considers your personal and professional needs as a leader.

About 15 years ago, my mentor and I met for lunch. We were talking about my professional goals, and she suddenly said to me, “Get ready.” “Get ready for what?” I asked. She repeated “Get ready.” At first, I thought she meant get ready for a new job. But as we talked, I learned it was more about me readying myself for what I wanted next professionally and how that integrated with my personal values and employer’s needs. With her guidance, I built my readiness map. For several years, I reflected on my map frequently to guide my professional and personal decision-making. Later, I revised the framework and started using it as a tool to support executives considering their own leader transitions.

Build your Readiness Map using these steps: 
Step 1 – Start with Reflective Questions:

• Why do I want to leave? 
  Perhaps you’re ready to retire or take on a new challenge or you and your partner/spouse are empty nesters and moving to a new city or state. Whatever it may be, acknowledge why you want to leave.
• What is the milestone or accomplishment that will tell me “This is the time to leave?”
  Sometimes having an end goal helps you determine when it’s time to leave. Perhaps it’s when that new facility is built or when the fundraising campaign is complete or when a new program is launched and established. Or perhaps a tenure mark of 5 or 10 years.
• How do I accomplish what is needed for me and the organization to be ready for my transition?
  Once you determine what you want to accomplish prior to your transition, then create a work plan towards the goal milestone you’ve noted.
• How do I prepare for the emotions of leaving?  
  Change is hard. Letting go can be even harder, even when planned, especially for those who have been in the role for many years. Being self-aware of your emotions through change helps. Also, family, friends, and strong personal networks can be tremendous resources for when emotions run high and low.

Take the time for these reflections. Think about them from a personal, professional, and organizational standpoint. There are no wrong answers – this is your plan.

Step 2 – Write Down Your Answers:
Put your reflections on paper or Notes or Word document (whichever system works best for you that you can readily access).

Step 3 – Turn Your Thoughts into a Plan:
Turn your reflections into a firm plan that includes specific details. Include a timeline and who is involved in the plan, such as your board, staff, family, and peers.

Step 4 – Share Your Plan:
Share your plan with a trusted colleague or mentor to provide a sounding board. This will help build your confidence in communicating it and offer encouragement in your intentions. Your colleague or mentor can also hold you accountable for your plan. Adjust your plan based on any feedback that feels right to you. Then share your plan with your board and then your staff.

Step 5 – Launch Your Plan:
Implement your plan and communicate it often with your board, staff, and stakeholders. This can be the hardest part, but engaging your board and staff in the process will help them get ready for your departure, ensuring the best for the organization and its mission you all serve. Frequent communication about your plan can also help you prepare for the emotions of leaving.

In the group discussion I did with Executive Directors each workshopped their own Readiness Map and we discussed it as a group. For some, plan ideas flowed. For others, it ebbed. As daunting an exercise as it felt, group members agreed it provided a framing they had not yet considered. Some even noted it felt good to put on paper what had already been swirling around in their head. Knowing that the Readiness Map is a living document also gave them comfort with their plan because we have all experienced how life is ever-changing.

Remember, being prepared to leave your organization is just as important as preparing to join it. Take time to build your Readiness Map. It will guide you to move forward from your leadership role with professionalism and care. Although you may not have answers to the reflective questions just yet, starting the process to think and plan towards your life options ensures you do right by yourself and right by the organization and the community you serve. Are you ready?  

When you are planning to leave your organization, get in touch with us! We offer interim nonprofit Executive Director services as well as nonprofit executive recruiting to keep your organization running smoothly during a leadership transition. Contact us today to find out more about how we can help!

About the Author
Liz Swanson

Liz has achieved dynamic results as a nonprofit leader with over 30 years of experience, ranging from Executive Director, Interim Executive Director, Development Director, Board President, and Non-profit Consultant. Liz has served major universities, non-governmental organizations, public schools, private schools, social service agencies, community organizations, religious organizations, youth agencies, and health organizations.
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Liz is ardent – ‘passionate’ - about all things nonprofit and helping organizations achieve their goals towards long-term success. In this, she partners with nonprofit leaders on their business from the inside-out - guiding organizational development and building leadership capacity – with a special emphasis on that unique working relationship between ED and Board.

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