When the CEO leaves

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So you done a fabulous job and you’re thinking about leaving. How long should you stay as a CEO? And the answer is ‘it depends’. If the fit is right, your relationship with the Board is good, your partnership with your Artistic Director and/or your management team works effectively, then you will want to stay for more than a couple of years. If you are only going to stay for three or four years, you’ll have time for some new modest initiatives, maybe a new major funding source or two and to build a good team but you won’t have time to do undertake and implement any major changes.

Perhaps I was just very ineffective but it took from 1994 to 2009 to do the three things I originally set out to do when I started at MTC. I had to solve the financial crisis, build a theatre and find new headquarters for the organisation and all of that took considerably longer than I planned. In each circumstance I needed not just the support of stakeholders but major financial contributions. With the Southbank Theatre, the building process itself was an extremely effective 18 months because we had a great brief, good architects and a well-managed building company but trying to find the right site and the right funding mix took a decade. With the HQ project, again we had all the right elements to make it work but we had to raise $5million and we were half way there when the global financial crisis hit and our fundraising ground to a holt. As did our building plan. This was a lucky outcome for the producers of the TV series The Librarians because it meant they could borrow  the building in its pre-renovated state to film their show although I did watch the last episode of the first series with my heart in my mouth as the “library” burnt to the ground.

Once the theatre was open and we moved into our new HQ, I decided to stay for another year just to enjoy an office with light, windows that opened, a view of a telegraph pole and a gum tree, flat floors, straight walls and a door that could close if required – none of which I’d experienced for the previous 15 years. Just when I was ready to leave, the Artistic Director reached the same conclusion so I stayed to oversee the transition….which took somewhat longer than planned as the new AD couldn’t start full time for 12 months.  So two years later than planned I finally left MTC.

Sometimes, the leaving is even harder. You don’t get on with your Chair; the staff aren’t as open to change as you’d like; you can’t find the financial resources to put your dream into action; no matter how hard you try, the funding bodies decide to defund you; your Board attempts to micromanage you. The two times I’ve left organisations because I was unhappy were because of incompetent or problematic bosses. No matter how much I loved the organisation, life was too short to be tormented on a daily basis. It’s not that every day at work needs to be a happy one but if you are going to perform at your best, you need to be able to do so without the interference of another’s poor management skills.

How can you best support the organisation in transition because much can be lost in this process? Transitions absorb time and energy from boards and staff. They are costly. “Credibility may be sacrificed. Funders and partners wonder if the organization has lost its way, whether it will have the ability to carry our programs, and whether it is trustworthy. Program development tends to slow or stop, awaiting the approval and guidance of the new leader. Staff may grow indecisive or contentious without a leader to guide. Organizational memory can be lost.” (Dym, Egmon & Watkins 2011).

During the transition the organisation has two tasks to manage – the process of finding the new CEO or co-leader and the day to day business of the organisation. This is why it’s often good to have an interim CEO. Usually organisations will look internally because that person comes with understanding of the company, its culture, its operations, its finances. This may also be a good development opportunity for that person. However, if that person is a candidate for the job, although it will provide the Board with a chance to see them at work in the desired position, it can be devastating if they aren’t successful. In my experience, finding an outside expert who doesn’t want the job is often a better outcome.

If there is someone in the organisation who has the potential to be the next CEO then their development opportunities should be ongoing – access to training, short term acting roles, special projects – not just waiting until the CEO resigns.

 Dym, B, Egmont, S & Watkins, L 2011, Managing Leadership Transition for Nonprofits,  Pearson Educational, Upper Saddle River NJ