by Leslie Ann Jackson, President & CEO, Camber Foundation

Why Building the Nonprofit Leadership Pipeline Needs Our Attention

Like many of us, I believe deeply in the power of leadership. Throughout my time in the nonprofit sector and in philanthropy, my greatest inspiration comes from bearing witness to people who thought something could be better where they live and did what it took to make that happen. They are leaders with impenetrable vision set into unstoppable motion, who over time, built organizations that stand as pillars in their communities.  

And they, themselves, have become so trusted and valued that it is hard to imagine a future without them. “What would we ever do without you?” is the constant refrain, the highest praise, and a real question. We owe it to these nonprofit leaders and their communities to support them when it’s time to give that real question a real answer.  

That’s why Camber Foundation added succession planning to our capacity-building support this year.  Our focus is on founder-leaders in Eastern North Carolina who are ready to pass the baton, and we are committed to helping them define and secure the time, space and resources needed to prepare for a leadership transition. Our approach is through customized one-on-one coaching, rooted in compassionate understanding.  

Here’s what we’re learning:

Lesson #1: The right planning partner makes it happen.

The same way these nonprofit leaders made change happen in their communities, the right succession planning partner brings relatability, sensitivity, cultural understanding, and accountability. Leaders know succession planning is important, but without a trusted coach alongside them, it is easy to let today’s pressing needs eclipse tomorrow’s organizational planning. We are seeing success with pairing leaders with a dedicated, one-on-one coach, who builds trust first.

Lesson #2: Preparing for transition means getting the house in order.

A major leadership transition requires ensuring that the organization is ready to welcome its next leader. That includes strong board governance, a sound operational structure and finances that adequately support those operations, which means salaries that attract and retain staff. It’s time to document key information, procedures and partnerships that might only be written in the leader’s mind. More than administrative details, these steps shape an organization someone will be compelled to lead.  

But “if you build it, they will come” is not enough. Through Camber Foundation’s work with transitioning founder-leaders in rural Eastern North Carolina, we are seeing firsthand that succession planning is about more than preparing for one leader’s eventual departure.  

It has revealed a more significant challenge—the need to intentionally build a pipeline of talented, motivated, and ready nonprofit leaders to take our rural nonprofits into the future.  

Lesson #3: One of the best ways we can show our gratitude to today’s nonprofit leaders is by developing a pipeline of next generation leaders who give them comfort and confidence that their legacy will last when it is time for them to step away.

At a time when nonprofit workforce burnout is high and experienced leaders are nearing transition, the nonprofit leadership pipeline needs attention. Add to that the unique challenge of population shifts in Eastern North Carolina communities. While young adult and prime working age groups in the region lag behind state averages, recent growth trends in these groups are promising. Strategic efforts could harness this potential for succession needs. 

Funders are showing up with support for nonprofit capacity-building, and we have a responsibility to include succession planning in these efforts by providing flexible funding and other organizational development resources needed to see these steps through in the communities we are called to serve.

But funding alone will not create a nonprofit workforce pipeline that needs to be ready when succession planning is complete. Funders, nonprofit leaders, educational institutions, workforce development partners and community members all have a role to play.  

In fact, Camber first heard the call for attention to the nonprofit workforce pipeline at a community conversation we held in Pembroke last fall. We are eager to continue that discussion with rooms full of passionate Eastern North Carolinians with the wisdom, the know-how and the drive to develop ideas into solutions that stick.  

We are asking, “How can we, together, build a sustainable nonprofit leadership pipeline that is ready when the succession planning is done?”  

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