Executive Transition + Succession Planning
The only constant is change
When managed with care, transitions in leadership can create space for reflection and renewal, strengthening an organization’s ability to advance its mission.
When poorly managed, however, there is the potential for serious disruption and harm to nonprofits, their teams, and most importantly, the communities they serve.
Yet, hiring support for managing the transition is financially out of reach for most nonprofits, and many organizations find themselves without a succession plan in place.
Help is here!
Executive Transitions Toolkit Board Training Interim/Consulting Support
Where to Start
- Get a copy of MANP's Mission-Driven Executive Transition toolkit.
- Consider the option of an interim executive director.
- Use the MANP Business Finder to find support.
- Get a copy of MANP's Mission-Driven Executive Transition toolkit.
- Get your board on the same page with a 2-3 hour training, scheduled at your convenience.
- Consider hiring support, such as an executive search consultant.
- Make sure you that have an emergency succession plan in place. Blue Avocado and Propel Nonprofits both have good samples/templates you can use as a starting point.
- Find many more resources on succession planning in MANP's resource library.
- Invest in leadership development across your organization.
- Watch "CEO Confidential: Planning, Communicating and Implementing Your Organizational Exit," a webinar recording from Nonprofit Quarterly, BoardSource, and Raffa Associates.
- If timing allows, consider participating in a "What’s Next Leadership Transition Cohort," hosted by our colleagues at TSNE.
- Reference our resource library for many more resources about succession planning.
Executive Transitions Toolkit
A practical roadmap for managing a values-driven leadership transition
MANP’s Mission-Driven Executive Transition toolkit, now in its second edition, provides a practical, easy-to-use framework to help you avoid common pitfalls and design a values-aligned, mission-driven leadership transition process, from the announced departure of your current executive director through the welcoming of new leadership.
Expanded + Revised 2nd Edition NOW AVAILABLE!
- Significantly expanded content and new tools to guide teams through each stage of the leadership transition process, including 25 templates and samples.
- A focus on intentional and inclusive decision-making and mitigating bias.
- Recommendations grounded in real-world nonprofit experience, incorporating evolving practices and field insights about healthy leadership transitions.
“We have been using the toolkit extensively to guide our transition team and found the information to be practical and useful. We couldn’t have been successful as a transition team without the toolkit!
Inside the Toolkit
This easy-to-follow toolkit provides boards with a roadmap through the phases of executive leadership transitions management:
- Prepare: Sharpen strategic direction and assess culture, strengths, opportunities, and risks.
- Search: Identify and hire new leadership, while stabilizing the organization in preparation for change.
- Thrive: Build trust and accountability, ensuring your new leader gets off to a strong start and is set up for success.
- Reflect: Capture learnings from the completed transition and invest in ongoing transition readiness.
Each section includes:
“This kit was incredible. The price was a pittance compared to its value to me and our Transition Committee. It’s worth many times that price.”
MANP knows that each leadership transition is unique. We encourage all organizations to adapt the guidance in this toolkit to their organization’s culture, context, and place.
Order Your Copy
$79 MANP members / $149 Nonmembers
Board Training
Preparing the board to successfully manage a transition is the first step in a successful process.
The Clock is Ticking: Stepping Up to the Challenge of Leadership Transition is an (approximately) two-hour training designed for nonprofit boards that are anticipating a retirement or have just learned that their Executive Director or CEO will be leaving and “the clock is ticking.” The goal is to ensure that the full board appreciates their responsibility and the essential elements to ensure a successful leadership transition.
The training will cover:
- The board’s role in the transition and search process
- Turning the transition from a liability to an opportunity
- Positioning the organization to successfully attract the very best candidates
- An overview of the essential elements of the transition process and timeline
- Assessing your capacity to manage the search
- The cost of a search and transition – the obvious and the not so obvious
- Managing communication with staff, key stakeholders, and your community
- First steps and next steps – guidance on where to begin
For additional support, referral to leadership transition consultants is also available.
Cost: $800 MANP members / $1,200 Nonmembers
This training is offered in partnership with Starboard Leadership Consulting. For more information or to schedule a training contact Molly O’Connell by email.
Additional Resources
Find a wealth of free resources in our searchable resource library. Topics include:
- the board's role in managing leadership transition
- succession planning, including emergency plan templates
- leadership development
- interim leadership
- internal succession
- power and decision-making
- founder transitions
- organizational assessment
- shared leadership
- executive compensation and contracts
- and more!