Losing your leader is unsettling. The best way to calm the anxiety of board, staff, parents, students, and other partners is to create an intentional plan to guide the organization through the transition. At Armstrong McGuire, this is our hallmark.

The first step: Understanding what CltBP needed most in an interim leader and then matching the best certified executive to their team. With a certified executive leader in place, the next steps were stabilizing the school and finding the permanent executive director.

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After conversations with the CltBP Board Chair, Director of Interim Services Kathy Ridge knew which certified interim leader could best step in to support the school. She called upon Stephen Smith to serve as Interim Executive Director for CltBP. Ridge said, “Stephen’s experience leading other multi-cultural organizations, combined with his strong business acumen and calming presence made him the obvious choice for Charlotte Bilingual.”  

Board Chair Devonya Govan-Hunt agreed, “I don't know that we would have been able to get through this without Stephen Smith. He has been such a jewel and a critical light when we needed one the most. His professionalism, ability to see people first, and immeasurable skill sets have not only guided us through but have helped us identify some very strategic opportunities to strengthen both the board and the overall organization.”  

With Smith taking over the day-to-day leadership the Board and the staff took a collective sigh of relief. Knowing they had a sound, steady, experienced leader to guide them, CltBP Board and staff members turned their focus back to their respective roles.  

Smith conducted an initial internal assessment to identify the School’s strengths, challenges, opportunities, and threats. In partnership with the Board, Smith began to address the challenges and threats to help position the School for sustainability through the transition. Ridge said, “One of the greatest gifts of the interim executive leadership is strategically tackling the most critical challenges so that the new leader has a clear runway of leadership as they come into the organization.”

With Smith focused on the immediate, the Board discerned how to embark on a successful transition. Once again, they partnered with Armstrong McGuire. This time for support in finding their permanent leader.

Advisors Staci Barfield and Tanya Varanelli gathered additional input from internal and external partners to help the Board define the skillsets and attributes they most needed in their next executive leader. From there a position profile was created and the recruitment phase launched.

As Varanelli and Barfield recruited bilingual leaders from across the nation, they also worked with the Transition Committee to identify individual and organizational biases and to ensure that every candidate had an equitable experience in the process. Armstrong McGuire believes that acknowledging biases and committing to consistent interview formats and questions at each stage results in a more equitable process for all.

Presented with a strong slate of candidates, the Committee chose the individuals they most wanted to interview. Armstrong McGuire handled the scheduling, provided interview formats and questions, and guided the Committee through each round of interviews.  

CltBP found the ideal match in CEO Ana S. Rey.

But Armstrong McGuire’s support did not end there. Varanelli and Barfield worked with the Transition Committee and the staff to create a thorough onboarding plan. They also facilitated a covenant conversation between Rey and the Board to set clear expectations for the CEO and the Board.

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