Group items tagged

2006 study

Bridgespan predicted that there would be a huge need for top-notch nonprofit leaders, driven by the growth of the nonprofit sector and the looming retirement of baby boomers from leadership posts.

the need for C-suite leaders5 grew dramatically.

the majority of our survey respondents (57 percent) attributed their retention challenges at least partially to low compensation, an issue that can feel daunting to many nonprofits. Lack of development and growth opportunities ranked next, cited by half of respondents as a reason that leaders leave their organizations.

those jobs keep coming open.

Surprisingly, little is due to the wave of retirement we have all been expecting: only 6 percent of leaders actually retired in the past two years.6

major reason is turnover:

losing a star performer in a senior development role costs nine times her annual salary to replace.

supply grew with it. Organizations largely found leaders to fill the demand.

corporate CEOs dedicate 30 to 50 percent of their time and focus on cultivating talent within their organizations.1

lack of learning and growth

lack of mentorship and support

he number one reason CEOs say they would leave their current role, other than to retire, was difficulty with the board of directors.

respondents said that their organizations lacked the talent management processes required to develop staff, and that they had not made staff development a high priority

combination of learning through doing, learning through hearing or being coached, and learning through formal training.

skill development can compensate for lack of upward trajectory. Stretch opportunities abound in smaller organizations where a large number of responsibilities are divided among a small number of people.

found that staff members who feel their organizations are supporting their growth stay longer than those who don’t, because they trust that their organizations will continue to invest in them over time.1

“When you invest in developing talent, people are better at their jobs, people stay with their employers longer, and others will consider working for these organizations in the first place because they see growth potential.”

define the organization’s future leadership requirements, identify promising internal candidates, and provide the right doses of stretch assignments, mentoring, formal training, and performance assessment to grow their capabilities.

Addressing root causes may steer funders away from supporting traditional approaches, such as fellowships, training, and conferences, and toward helping grantees to build their internal leadership development capabilities, growing talent now and into the future across their portfolio of grantees.