Two Heads are Better Than One
When a nonprofit CEO departs an organization, it’s not uncommon for the Board Chair to step into the interim role as a way to address the leadership vacuum. Ideally, when this happens, he/she relinquishes the Board Chair role and another board member steps in to lead, either as the new or temporary Board Chair, depending upon the length of time it takes to find a new CEO.
Unfortunately, too often, boards do not understand the role of the Interim CEO. They tend to think of this person as simply a placeholder. With the best of intentions, boards see this as an opportunity to save money during the search by recruiting a volunteer to serve as Interim. They also want to believe that the search won’t take too long and they don’t anticipate any major disruption to services because their staff is very competent and capable. These are all potentially risky assumptions.
An executive transition is a very challenging time. Change threatens stability and confidence. To keep an organization strong while a new leader is being identified, recruited and onboarded, it is critical to manage this process carefully. Board and staff members need a clear understanding of who’s in charge, everyone’s roles and responsibilities during this time, and how it all fits together for continuity and sustainability. Having two different individuals serving in the roles of Board Chair and Interim CEO during this period is an important first step.
You might ask “why?” First and foremost, each role requires significant time and focused attention. Trying to manage both dilutes effectiveness.
Other reasons to keep these two roles separate and distinct include:
The Board hires the CEO and holds him/her accountable. The Chair leads this effort. This becomes problematic when Chair and Interim CEO are one.
While the Board hires the CEO, the CEO hires and manages staff. This clear line of accountability helps protect staff from micromanagement by Board members. When both roles are held by one person, confusion and distrust can arise.
The Chair leads the board as it pursues governance and high-level strategic thinking while the CEO is focused on working with staff to pursue processes, plans, action steps and outcomes. These each require time, attention and clear thinking.
To help you think about this, here is a link to a BoardSource article that helps delineate the differences. https://boardsource.org/board-chair-chief-executive-partnership/
Together, this partnership of Board Chair and Interim CEO is fundamental to keeping the organization’s mission on track. In this case, two heads are better than one!