By Chris Gandy

I fully appreciate that the departure of a member of a not for profit’s leadership group can be highly disruptive. It can herald a period of uncertainty and is a definite inconvenience for those who are asked to cover for bits and pieces that have been left hanging by the recently departed.

This is no excuse however for adopting a “get someone quick, as long as they are breathing” attitude adopted by many Boards and CEOs we come across. Not only is this approach highly dangerous in terms of finding the right person but it fails to recognise, and take advantage of, the great opportunities presented to an organisation by such an event.

When you really think about it, most not for profits have precious few chances to change their strategic settings. The capability and skill set of the current team pretty well determines performance levels and future direction. And few organisations have the financial luxury of simply adding new talent to their teams where they see emerging skill gaps.

A vacancy changes this dynamic and opens up a world of opportunity. The first of these is a time to reflect and …..

Think about where you see your organisation in 3-5 years.

Think about the skills and experience you will realistically need to get to that place.

Think about how you will go about finding, attracting, recruiting and keeping a person with that necessary talent.

Call us at Cause & Effective if you are determined to extract every opportunity from the next vacancy you have in your leadership team.

About Chris – He is a former not for profit CEO and Founder of Cause & Effective – We help organisations get the right leaders.