The Role of the Nonprofit Board in Hiring an Executive Director

by Bill Moran
The Moran Company “We Find Great Nonprofit Leaders”

We all know the importance of a strong Executive Director/CEO for a nonprofit. A good Executive Director will make all the difference in how well a nonprofit performs in fulfilling its mission. For better or worse, leadership trumps all else, except for the nature of the cause itself.

What is the proper role of the Board in hiring nonprofit leadership? The simple answer is that it has the top role. The Board, as the governing body of the nonprofit, has the responsibility and opportunity to hire the Executive Director. This is the most important decision that Board members will make during their tenure.

Almost universally, nonprofit Boards take this decision very seriously and want to do a good job. They have a collective wisdom and work experience that is invaluable in the search for a new Executive Director. Also, the Board must have ownership of the hiring decision because the Executive Director will be reporting to them.

However, it has been my experience that too often (perhaps 50% of the time) a nonprofit Board acting alone does not make a good hire for the Executive Director position. Why? Well certainly any hire, for-profit or nonprofit, can go wrong. Also, in the case of nonprofit Executive Directors:

1. Individual Board members generally have good expertise in hiring staff. However, they may not understand all the skills needed in the nonprofit sector. The nonprofit sector is different in important ways. Some skills that are critical for nonprofit leadership are rarely seen in the for-profit world, such as the ability to fundraise, to motivate volunteers and effectively work with a Board of Directors.
2. Board members, as volunteers, typically lack the time to actively seek out candidates not currently in the job market. Instead, they post the position on job boards and wait for the resumes to come in. The best candidates often are not actively looking for work and therefore do not look at job boards.
3. Board members generally do not take the time to informally check on the background of candidates to discern their actual work productivity. A recruiter with strong connections can often find out a candidate’s work history.

A good recruiter who specializes in nonprofit searches will complement the Board and greatly increase the chances of a successful hire. A qualified recruiter usually has spent his or her career in the nonprofit sector. A well-qualified recruiter may have served as an Executive Director and has an excellent understanding of the position.

Here are steps that effectively combine the Board and the nonprofit recruiter into a strong search process:

1. The recruiter leads the Board through a process to identify the attributes needed in their new nonprofit Executive Director.
2. The Board selects a Search Committee made up of the strongest Board members. The Search Committee oversees the recruiter and search process.
3. The recruiter proactively reaches out to respected individuals who are well connected in the arena where candidates are to be found. These individuals recommend possible candidates and other resource individuals for the recruiter to contact. The recruiter follows up on these leads.
4. The recruiter posts the position on job boards specific to the sector.
5. The recruiter identifies preliminary candidates.
6. The recruiter conducts face-to-face screening interviews with these candidates. He or she may informally check on candidate backgrounds.
7. The recruiter presents a “short” list of qualified candidates to the Search Committee. (This includes perhaps 4 to 6 candidates).
8. The Board Search Committee conducts semifinal interviews for the position. Generally, 2 or 3 candidates are chosen for final interviews.
9. The recruiter calls references and formal background checks are completed. Personality assessments may be conducted.
10. If possible, the entire Board interviews the finalists. The staff have an opportunity to meet the finalists.
11. The Board makes a successful hire.

It is the Board’s role to hire the new Executive Director. When the Board’s experience is combined with the expertise of a highly qualified nonprofit recruiter, the chances for a successful hire are very good. The organization ends up with a solid CEO who moves the organization’s mission forward. The Board effectively fulfills its most important duty.

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© 2016 The Moran Company, “We find great nonprofit leaders.” We specialize in searches for nonprofit executive directors, directors of development/fundraising staff, and other top nonprofit leadership. www.morancompany.com