Description

When an Executive Director or CEO departs unexpectedly, steps down, or a planned transition needs more runway, nonprofit boards face a high-stakes decision with fewer resources and less margin for error than their for-profit counterparts. An interim leadership gap can put grant renewals, major donor relationships, staff retention, and program continuity all at risk at once — and boards, often made up of volunteers without deep HR or executive-transition experience, are expected to navigate it well.

This workshop equips nonprofit board members and senior staff to approach the interim CEO/Executive Director decision deliberately rather than reactively. Participants will work through a structured framework for evaluating whether an interim appointment fits their organization's situation and resources, how to guide the full board through that decision process, what needs to be communicated to funders, donors, staff, and the community, and the most common pitfalls that derail interim leadership arrangements at mission-driven organizations. The session blends frameworks with real nonprofit case studies and applied discussion so participants leave with a decision and communication plan they can act on.

Learning Outcomes

By the end of the workshop, participants will have a plan to:

• Assess fit — evaluate whether an interim CEO/Executive Director is a solution given their organization's situation, using a framework that weighs trigger events, board and staff capacity, and alternatives (e.g., promoting internally, an associate director stepping up, a shared/fractional leadership model).
• Guide the board — design and facilitate a sound decision-making process for an all-volunteer board, including how to structure a clear, documented decision.
• Communicate with confidence — identify what must be communicated to each stakeholder group (staff, program participants/community, major donors and funders, grant officers, board members, local press) and when, to protect trust and safeguard the funding relationships the organization depends on.
• Avoid common pitfalls — recognize the recurring mistakes nonprofit boards make with interim leadership arrangements (unclear mandate, board members overstepping into management, stalled fundraising during the gap, premature or delayed communication to funders).

Audience

Primary: Nonprofit board members, board chairs, and governance committee members who may need to make or oversee an interim CEO/Executive Director decision.

Secondary: Senior nonprofit staff (Deputy Director, Development Director, HR/Operations lead) who support the board through a leadership transition and help execute the communication plan with funders and the community.

Nonprofits First, Inc is recognized by SHRM to offer Professional Development Credits (PDCs) for SHRM-CP® or SHRM-SCP® recertification activities.

ABOUT THE PRESENTER

Kerry A. Diaz, JD is an innovative nonprofit, policy and philanthropy professional with over 30 years of experience working with cause-based organizations to effect internal and external change. Kerry was admitted to practice law in three states and uses this analytical lens combined with an affinity for service to assist philanthropic and nonprofit organizations to examine systems, create pathways to change and develop dynamic cultures. 

Diaz’s career highlights include legislative staff in the Florida Capital, an advocate for hospice and homecare in California and as a nonprofit and foundation COO and CEO in her native Palm Beach County. In addition, Kerry has served on numerous local boards and committees and she and her husband are former foster parents.

Kerry Diaz was born Kerry Rodriguez in West Palm Beach and returned to Palm Beach County over 20 years ago where she re-met and married a childhood friend. She has three boys, two in college and one in high school. She is a graduate of Villanova University and Florida State University College of Law.