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Author Archive: David Harris
Preparing for the unexpected
Do any of the following apply to a nonprofit you are associated with? Valued employees are finding other jobs or reaching out to Board members with concerns Some long time funders are not renewing their support The cash flow forecast shows signs of trouble (or you are not even getting a cash flow forecast) Your long time leader is planning to step down and people are nervous Stress levels are rising These situations typically get worse before they get better, so if you are seeing any of these signs, it’s time to get really curious in order to avoid allowing […]
Barbra Kavanaugh joins IES Partnership
We are thrilled to announce that Barbra Kavanaugh has joined our Partnership. Barbra has many years of interim leadership experience following a career in law and nonprofit management, and co-Founded and directed the DC-based Interim Executive Network. Now based in Florida, as an IES Partner Barbra will be integrally involved in ensuring our client engagements lead to strong, sustainable nonprofits that are delivering on their mission and can attract, retain and support their next great leader. With access to over 130 pre-vetted seasoned professional nonprofit leaders throughout the country, Interim Executive Solutions can quickly respond when transitions, whether planned or […]
Fall 2023 events
Having worked with over 60 nonprofits from New England through DC and beyond over the last year, mostly in the capacity of interim EDs, Interim Executive Solutions Associates and Partners are helping many nonprofits be more sustainable, resilient and effective in achieving their missions. Connect with us at one of these workshops and conferences to learn what you might do to increase your organization’s resilience and sustainability during a time of transition. October 2, 8-5, visit our table at the Providers’ Council Convention, Marriott Copley Place, Boston, MA October 12, 2:10-3:15, learn about Preparing for and Navigating Executive Leadership Transitions […]
How an Interim COO can strengthen your Nonprofit
IES’s experience placing and supporting Interim COOs has shown them to be a great way to strengthen nonprofit operations and the management team. They can be helpful in support of new EDs or experienced EDs planning to transition out, as well as those looking to improve their infrastructure and the capacity of their team.
Nonprofit resilience
In the last few years, nonprofits have endured the pandemic, a tight job market with increasing mobility and wages, a challenging and ever-changing funding environment, prescient social movements and much more. Having worked in interim leadership roles with about 60 nonprofits in the past 12 months, Interim Executive Solutions professionals have learned a lot about what makes a nonprofit resilient. In partnership with Isis Latham from Primerica, this recent webinar addresses issues such as: Adequate funding Adaptable operations Internal controls Talent management and accountability, and Crisis management protocols If your nonprofit is experiencing or anticipating a leadership transition, now might be the best time to […]
Executive Search and Interim Leadership: Complementary Transition Partners
Interim Leadership and Executive Search are complementary to each other and provide nonprofits in transition with the highest probability of finding, attracting and ensuring the long-term success of a new leader. Interim leaders assess all aspects of operations and partner with nonprofit boards and the existing staff to create a positive, high functioning and sustainable environment that can attract and support a new leader. They then enhance the executive search process by identifying key leadership characteristics that will be needed, and preparing the staff and board to onboard and support the successful candidate. Read this white paper to learn more.
ChatGPT and Interim Leadership
I asked ChatGPT “Why is interim leadership valuable for nonprofits?” Here was the response: Interim leadership can be highly valuable for nonprofits for several reasons: Continuity of operations: Interim leadership can ensure the continuity of the nonprofit’s operations during a period of transition. When a key executive or leader departs, the organization can experience a gap in leadership, which can disrupt the day-to-day operations. Interim leadership can help fill this gap until a permanent leader is found, ensuring that the nonprofit can continue to function and fulfill its mission. Stability and reassurance: Interim leaders can provide stability and reassurance […]
Interim Leadership
Getting You to What’s Next Interim Executive Solutions was founded to provide seasoned interim executives to nonprofit organizations in transition. We work for your nonprofit’s Board of Directors to fill a temporary executive vacancy and to help build the leadership capacity of your nonprofit for long-term stability. Our team of nonprofit professionals also offers specific skill sets that may help nonprofits solve a particular problem or establish a new tool or capability within their organization or among a network of organizations. Through IES, you can contract for interim executive leadership services for nonprofits, mentoring/coaching to develop leadership skills and consulting […]
Successful Nonprofits Podcast
Just released: this podcast on Why You Need an Interim Executive Director, features a conversation between Dolph Goldenburg, an experienced Interim Executive Director, and David Harris, our Managing Partner. Here is what you will learn: The role of the Board Interim ED as thought partner, listener, and learner Setting time and scope expectations Benefits of hiring a professional interim Hiring your new permanent ED Finding and hiring your interim ED Please send your feedback to dharris@interim-exec.org
Interim Leadership for Nonprofits – the Podcast and other resources
Our Managing Partner, David Harris, was recently featured on The Nonprofit Show podcast with Julia Patrick and Jarrett Ransom. This 30 minute podcast provides a great summary of interim leadership and where it might fit in your plans. For more in-depth information, you might review this recent webinar featuring IES partners Sarah Bingman Schott and David Harris on Leadership Transitions. If you prefer to read a summary, here it is.
In 2021 we got almost 20 nonprofits to what’s next
2021 has been the most inspiring year yet for our interim leadership team and we are proud to share that our Associate, Sarah Bingman Schott, has recently become an IES Partner as we continue to grow. Last year we had the privilege of working with almost 20 nonprofits throughout New England and New York, many of which extended our engagement so that we could better prepare their organization for a new leader. Moreover, our team of experienced interim leadership Associates has more than doubled as individuals and nonprofits are recognizing more and more the value of having an interim leader […]
Getting to What’s Next: Nonprofit Leadership Transitions
As the pandemic wanes, leadership turnover at nonprofit organizations seems to be increasing. For an in-depth primer on Succession Planning, review this workshop, conducted for the ECCF Institute for Trustees and the National HBS Nonprofit Board Summit, then ask yourself: “Is your organization ready”? Here are 5 questions to consider: Is your organization stable and sustainable? Is the CEO job well-defined, streamlined and doable? Is the Board ready for the transition and is its vision clear? Is a strong executive team in place and well prepared? Is the outgoing leader ready to transition, professionally and personally? Professional interim leadership gets nonprofit organizations ready […]
Interim Leadership In Action
Here are some recent leadership transitions that Interim Executive Solutions team members have helped organizations navigate. As Rainbow Child Development Center contemplated its next Executive Director, the IES team advised the board as to how to manage the transition, which search firms to consider and how to onboard and support the new ED. An IES Associate then worked with the outgoing ED to ensure all policies and procedures would be maintained in this highly regulated environment before taking over as Interim ED. Subsequently he handled the delicate task of preparing the staff and parents for new leadership and reopening during […]
Ensuring your Nonprofit Mission Survives the Pandemic
Nonprofits are designed to have a mission or cause, the focus of what they doing. The day-to-day work, ideally, is in service of that mission. Sometimes, however, the focus becomes more about the organization itself than necessarily about the mission. The staff, the communities being served, and the funders are all important stakeholders that influence a nonprofit and its direction, so, particularly during the pandemic, it has been easy to lose focus on the purpose of the organization; the mission or cause. To ensure long term survival, and indeed the opportunity to thrive, thereby saving as many jobs as possible […]
ACES: A framework for managing through periods of change
In today’s world, change is a constant for nonprofits. This is especially so in crises such as the current Covid-19 pandemic. As staff leaders and nonprofit board members, your approach to change can be more consistent. The ACES framework, developed by Interim Executive Solutions, provides some guidance: Assess the situation – where are you now? Contain the crisis – shore up current operations Explore options – are there pathways to increase viability? Sustain the mission – develop and execute your plan. For more information on the ACES framework and how nonprofits are applying it, view the recent webinar, download the […]
Nonprofit 411: Using Board and Staff Surveys to Drive Continuous Improvement
Nonprofit 411: Using Board and Staff Surveys to Drive Continuous Improvement SEPTEMBER 4, 2020 BY ADMIN By Davis Harris, Interim Executive Solutions Representing all voices, and hearing from all voices, are not the same thing. Nonprofits have become acutely aware of the need to bring diversity to the staff and to the board, but that does not necessarily mean they are hearing diverse perspectives. Organizations function best when all perspectives are considered but there is often too little time or opportunity in board meetings, staff meetings or even 1-1 conversations to explore differences based on background, lived experiences, or vision for the future. […]
Board and Executive Leadership Collaboration in a Time of Crisis
Crisis situations, such as the current Covid-19 pandemic, demand that a nonprofit board and the executive leadership work together far more closely than would normally occur. This is because the circumstances can impact: Mission and vision (what you do), Funding and budgets (the resources available), Governance processes (decision-making authority and documentation), Stakeholders (impact on staff, clients, supporters and others), Management priorities (how the ED will be evaluated), and ultimately The core values of the organization (how your actions will be perceived). While the chief executive oversees day-to-day implementation of these issues, responsibility for approving and monitoring execution is actually the […]
Interim Executives: Providing Stability in Times of Uncertainty
By Brian Krehbiel Times of disruption and uncertainty are times in which organizations tend to seek help from interim executives. I’ve noticed this phenomenon over more than two decades of providing interim executives to hospitals and health systems. When the future is cloudy, organizations are often reluctant to fill open positions with permanent hires, and instead look to executives who can serve them capably for a finite period of time. Interim leadership buys the organization valuable time and generates a feeling of organizational stability. What many organizations may not realize is just how much benefit and return on investment they […]
Nonprofit Survival in the Era of Covid 19
Dateline 3-19-20: The next few weeks are going to test us all and will require very challenging decisions we would never dream of having to make under normal circumstances. For many nonprofits the initial instinct for survival may mean minimizing unnecessary costs, no matter how unpleasant such decisions may be. On the other hand, this may be a time to critically review programs, assess resilience and sustainability, and envision new ways to achieve your mission. As many people have time on their hands and are captive audiences as they wait out Covid 19, it may even be the time to test […]
Resiliency: A Diagnostic for Success by Steve Stanton (Part 2)
Part one of this blog attempted to make the case for nonprofit resiliency. Here Steve Stanton shares a diagnostic model for organizational resilience based on seven core elements. A Clear Organizational Identity: Are we aligned as to who we are? Do we have continuous and aligned focus and flexibility on core issues? Relevant Mission: Is it clear why we are here and what our core purpose is? Vision: Can we articulate what our eventual success will look like? Strategic Plan: Do we know what the organization’s critical goals, actions, and measures are? Is the plan continuously renewed? Do we know […]
A New Model for Nonprofit Resiliency by Steve Stanton (Part 1)
Some nonprofits need to improve their marketing, and others have to focus on building up their boards, but ALL nonprofits need to improve their resiliency. Resiliency means the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties. This ability extends beyond flexibility and encompasses far more than “capacity building”. A resilient organization is able to find ways to succeed in all types of conditions and to bounce back whenever problems arise. To quote a cliché, resilience is the ability to “keep calm and carry on” in all types of situations, to extend success in good times and to recover quickly in troubled times. […]
The big misses that non-profits do not do well or could be more effective at
Every nonprofit we encounter has different strengths and weaknesses but there are a few common challenges and blind spots that many of them share. Here are just a few: The first rule of a nonprofit is that you actually have to make a profit or a surplus (what you call it doesn’t matter but you cannot run a nonprofit sustainably at a deficit). Mission achievement is often used to justify deficits and while they may be okay in the short term they cannot be allowed to last. Profit is not a dirty word. Objective program assessment: each program an organization […]
Are Donors Solving Problems—or Creating New Ones
from “Gospels of Giving for the New Gilded Age”, by Elizabeth Kolbert , New Yorker, 8-27-18 Skeptics fear philanthropies have gained undue influence on public policy. In the spring of 1889, Andrew Carnegie published an essay on money. If possession confers knowledge, then there wa s no greater expert on the subject: Carnegie was possibly the richest American who ever lived. The essay, which was printed first in the North American Review, then in Britain’s Pall Mall Gazette, and later reissued in a pamphlet, became known as “The Gospel of Wealth.” The “Gospel” opened with a discussion of inequity. This was the Gilded Age, and, […]
Lessons from the Merger Culture War
by N. Paul TonThat, Associate, Interim Executive Solutions A Vision/Mission statement for an organization undergoing transition and/or merger is that most exquisite and powerful of commodities. If it is focused, precise and singularly inspiring, it will almost define entirely alone the new or changing organization’s program and governance. On the other hand the mission statement is bound to fail if the focus is overly broad, the standard of services is undefined, and the definition of success is left unspecified. An Uncomfortable Truth Organizational merger is first a contest of power, will and influence before it is an exercise about increasing […]
Leadership Transition in Nonprofits Presents Challenges
By Stan Burrows In March 2017 Third Sector New England published an important paper for the Boston Foundation entitled Opportunity in Change: Preparing Boston for Leader Transitions and New Models of Nonprofit Leadership. The paper was released at a conference that was videotaped that you can review. This effort was a part of the Boston Foundation’s ongoing program on Understanding Boston developed through partnerships with government and local institutions. The focus of this effort, the fifth in the series, is on preparing nonprofits for the long awaited and much discussed retirement of the baby boom generation and the passing of […]
How to Prepare a Budget for Your Nonprofit Organization
Developing a sound budget that provides the Board and Executive team the key information for Planned (based on the budget prepared at the beginning of the year) vs. Actual (what is actually spent per category on a weekly or monthly basis) is critical to the success of a nonprofit. Grantspace, a service of Foundation Center, provides an excellent collection of information and tools for nonprofit budgeting. Project Budget All budgets have two common elements: your estimate of the true costs of the project and your anticipated income to meet those costs. Your expenses will be direct costs—any personnel and non-personnel […]
Exploring Success Strategies for Nonprofit Mergers
The number of US nonprofits actually grew 7 percent between 2007 and 2011 to 1.58 million, an average of nearly 40 nonprofits per US zip code. But the rate of mergers in the nonprofit sector has remained flat. This is unfortunate. Mergers can make good sense for many nonprofit organizations. But there are challenges on the way to achieving success. Below is a checklist from some of the best of the “nonprofit merger” literature to help Boards and Executives get started thinking about this opportunity. Nonprofit Mergers Most Likely to Succeed Done for strategic reasons Combining separate competencies Joining contiguous or related […]
IES Helps MetroWest & CAN-DO Nonprofits to Merge
Nonprofits Announce Merge to Better Meet Affordable Housing Needs Long-time Newton-based nonprofit Citizens for Affordable Housing in Newton Development Organization (CAN-DO) announces its affiliation, as of January 1, with Metro West Collaborative Development, Inc., also of Newton. Both organizations say that their affiliation move will help grow and support affordable housing in the area. On February 1 Metro West will take over management of the CAN-DO properties through its offices on Chapel Street in Newton. “CAN-DO was attracted to becoming an organization with a more diverse collection of income sources and the opportunity of working in numerous towns said Susan Davidoff, […]
A Nonprofit Turnaround Story
Christian W. Dame by Christian Dame The New England Shelter for Homeless Veterans (NESHV) faced a crisis. Financial problems had caused the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to suspend state funding and the Board of Directors asked the CEO to resign. The Board then asked NPT’s principal Chris Dame to step in and take charge. Chris assumed day-to-day operational control of a $6.1 million budget and 125 person staff serving 350 homeless clients daily, plus operating 45 apartments and a job training program for 600 other veterans in a 14 story building in downtown Boston, Massachusetts. Meeting the next payroll was problematic. […]
Cultivating Successful Executive Directors
by Alison Buckser, MP; Public Health Solutions “Dream jobs” can be a lot of trouble. Imagine that, after years of doing excellent program work for a nonprofit you deeply respect, the board gives you the executive director (ED) position. You are finally able to lead your organization in truly fulfilling its mission. But now it’s two years later, and you are miserable and exhausted. The board is angry, the staff is demoralized, and the finances are a mess. You are ready to quit and vow to never serve as an ED for anyone ever again.” This case study illustrates some […]
Capacity Building Tips for a Stronger Nonprofit
Christian W. Dame by Christian Dame A Crowded Field The National Center for Charitable Statistics’ website reports that Massachusetts has 19,037 nonprofits who reported financial information to the IRS in 2008, 34.4 nonprofit organizations for every 10,000 residents. Rhode Island, surprisingly, had almost a quarter as many – 4349 or 47.4 per 10,000 population. Neither of these rates compares favorably with large conservative states like Texas (20.3) or even other, larger liberal states like New York (28.4) or California (22.6). New England seems to grow nonprofits almost twice as fast as everybody else.If there are too many organizations chasing too […]
Unhappy Endings
According to Daring to Lead 2006: A National Study of Nonprofit Executive Leadership, a recent report from CompassPoint Nonprofit Services and the Meyer Foundation, an executive is forced out or fired in an estimated 34 percent of nonprofit transitions. Dismissing an executive, for whatever reason, can be particularly challenging for boards and for the transition process more broadly. An outright confrontation with a CEO who is underperforming is not appealing. Many board members avoid the situation or quietly resign. In addition to creating the threat of a wrongful termination lawsuit, firing an executive can lead to a sense of crisis, […]
News to Use
This list of readings on nonprofit management offers a range of articles, posts, stories, reports, data and more that we hope will be of interest to and useful for nonprofit organizations. New articles are posted in our “News to Use” monthly newsletter. Please subscribe here.