The Four Essential Qualities of a Nonprofit Executive Search Committee Chair

by Bruce A. Scott, M.S.W.
Senior Search Consultant
The Moran Company  “We Find Great Nonprofit Executives”

Search committees of nonprofit boards usually have members who are at once both excited and intimidated by the task. Some volunteered, some were invited and cajoled, and some eagerly jumped in as it was the first board duty that really felt substantial. We have offered several excellent blog posts on search committees, such as The Top 3 Factors and Functions of the Search Committee in a Nonprofit Executive Search, so we turn now to the Search Committee Chair. What should a board look for when choosing the Chair?

As in all nonprofit governance processes, an excellent Chair goes a long way toward ensuring an excellent result. Here are four essential qualities for your Search Committee Chair:

1. Knowledge of the Organization – The first quality on the list is deep knowledge of the mission, services, and history of the organization. In addition, working knowledge of the duties of the role being filled and the qualities that have enhanced performance (or detracted from the performance) of predecessors is very helpful. This basic understanding of the work to be done helps at every turn of the search. Certainly a background in hiring is helpful, but if you’re hiring a search firm, err on the side of selecting a Chair who knows the organization. The short list to review should include past Board Chairs from recent years.
2. Accessibility – The Search Committee Chair must have enough time and availability to be accessible for consultation throughout the search, either to guide the Board from start to finish or to serve as an official liaison to a professional recruiting firm like the Moran Company. Executive searches are time and calendar sensitive, so one of the values a search firm brings is creation of a reasonable calendar that moves through a process. The best candidates have other options (and often offers) and need to know that the process is on a schedule. Volunteer committees and boards are not assembled on short notice, so we ask for meeting commitments for interviews weeks in advance. To stay on schedule, we need a Search Chair who is available for input and decisions on the inevitable bumps and evolving circumstances.
3. Meeting & Process Skills – Committees have been called “animals with four back legs.” The Search Committee Chair needs skills in moving that animal, using meeting processes to evaluate all options in an open but time-efficient manner, gain consensus, and execute formal votes. Outside committee meetings, a Chair can use advance individual discussion with opinion leaders to settle real or anticipated disputes. And when a committee member is out-of-bounds, the Chair must be willing to call him or her back to task.
4. Passion and Patience – For most boards, selecting a new CEO is the most important and difficult task they have ever undertaken. Very few boards have exercised this major-decision muscle together so the process has many opportunities for self-doubt, digression, and frustration. An excellent Search Chair holds the vision banner high and reminds board members and other stakeholders of the goals of the search. The Chair is also patient and willing to tend to the feelings of the group, knowing that the board hasn’t done many jobs this big and at the same time is very capable of making it happen.

While an excellent Search Chair might be a current or past board member, he or she might not be the first person nominated. Look for deep knowledge of the organization, time and accessibility, skills in running a committee, and a big heart for the process.

For more information on this topic, be sure to read our additional blogs including “The Role of the Nonprofit Board in Hiring an Executive Director” and “Forming a Board Search Committee to Hire a Nonprofit Executive Director”. Whether you are at the beginning stages of a search or further along in the process, we invite you to contact us for 30-minutes of free consultation. We know how important it is to make the right hire for critical nonprofit leadership positions and want to help you and your organization or association succeed.

© 2018 The Moran Company, “We find great nonprofit executives.” We specialize in searches for nonprofit executive directors, directors of development/fundraising staff, and other top nonprofit leadership. www.morancompany.com