When a board should fire the ED, and when it shouldn’t

From Blue Avocado

Jan Masaoka writes in the Blue Avocado nonprofit newsletter that a national CompassPoint study in 2006 found that nearly 30 percent of departing executive directors were either fired or forced out.

“To some this is a sign that boards are responsible, attentive custodians of the public trust,” she wrote, “while others will read this news as evidence that boards are untrustworthy blowhards. The point here is simply that boards fire their executives more often than is commonly thought, and so there is ample reason to pay attention to doing it well.”

Nonprofit boards tend to fall into two camps when they become dissatisfied with an executive director. “Some boards let their dissatisfaction simmer for years without resolution,” Masaoka said. “Other boards are too hasty and fire an executive at the drop of a hat or, more often, abruptly conclude a long period of silent dissatisfaction with a sudden termination. Sometimes just knowing more about how boards fire their EDs can help you relax into working more proactively with yours.”

In instances of embezzlement or unethical behavior, the need to terminate is clear to everyone, she said. But, “more often it’s a little fuzzier – board members may get indications over time that the ED is either not doing her job or causing problems for the organization, but when to fire is not clear cut. So when and how do you do it?” Click here to find out.