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Organizations large and small benefit from the use of retained executive searches. Each nonprofit, and even each department within a nonprofit, has a unique set of leadership needs, and retained search is one way to plan an organization’s future. For the use of a retained search to be effective, it is important for clients to know why they should work with such a recruiter and what they can expect from doing so.

Drawing on my experience as a recruiter for the nonprofit sector, I offer some situations where the use of a retained search firm is a good strategy for success:

When you need to cast a wide net

I’ve worked with a wide range of organizations, from those having budgets less than $500,000 to those having budgets close to $100 million, all where a beloved executive director was leaving. Naturally, the boards and staff get very anxious when there is change at the top: “We will never find another so and so!”, “How will we get someone at the salary we have been paying?” These concerns are very real, but they need to be managed in such a way that those involved in the search can remain open to new candidates and see that someone new can, indeed, be as equally dedicated to the organization’s mission as the person being replaced. Just as important, a search committee or hiring manager needs to be open to the “unexpected” candidate such as someone who is not necessarily looking for a new role or who is an out-of-the-box candidate.  

To help find such candidates, a retained search consultant brings to the search access to a wider network than that of the board and staff. The involvement of a search consultant brings in and makes visible candidates who might otherwise fly under the radar or who may not have considered a new opportunity had it not been presented to them by the recruiter. A consultant is also a diplomatic outsider who can moderate a search committee through the process and help make sense of all of the new information and candidate experience in front of them.

During major organizational change

Another situation where a recruiter is beneficial is when the organization is undergoing major change and may need an intermediary to “coax” candidates into viewing the organization in a different (possibly better) light. In encountered such a situation in my work as a recruiter. A senior level, operations position was open at a university. This position was integral to the continued success of fundraising efforts. Unfortunately, there were many changes happening at the university including turmoil at the top. But, regardless of the chaos, this senior operations position was going to exist no matter what changes occurred, and it needed to be attractive to candidates.

As the recruiter, I was able to draw from my own personal experiences at higher education institutions undergoing change. I also understood the higher education culture. Together, these factors enabled me to understand the position as one with long term potential despite what was happening in the short term, therefore, I could genuinely encourage candidates to do the same.

In addition to understanding the organization’s culture, I also well understood the intricacies of the position. This was one that needed not just a strong technical background but also a deep understanding of fundraising. Having experience in both areas, I was able to translate the needs of the position to candidates and could assess the candidates’ technical and political skills.

Finally, as previously mentioned as a benefit to using a retained search consultant, I was also able to reach out to a regional pool of candidates which would have been difficult for the Human Resources Office to do as they were facing cut backs and lacked the manpower to move the interviewing process forward. My ability to do so was definitely beneficial to an organization short on resources to do so in the midst of major change. Using a recruiter who understands both the role being recruited and the specific sector of nonprofit can add a level of credibility to the search.

Filling a newly created position

Some accuse the nonprofit sector of not adapting to change as quickly as the for-profit world. I believe that is a misnomer especially as the sector becomes more global. Nowhere are things more quickly changing than in the areas of global public health and economic development.

In the recent past, nonprofits devoted to health, poverty and other social issues were the domains of those having specific academic credentials in the geographic areas served. But, today, there are many innovative organizations setting up shop. The roles being created have never before existed.  There is now a need for staff with both expertise in a specific geographical area and experience/expertise in finance, fundraising and/or program administration. It can be difficult to track these folks down.

One search in which I participated was for a very large, well-known US-based organization seeking candidates with strong experience in corporate and foundation partnerships as they related to global health and the environment. They wanted to do a global search. As it was a highly visible, high-status organization, any job of theirs posted would result in an overwhelming response.

When the resumes started to pour in, I began to think that my computer would explode – resumes from Uzbekistan, Brazil, Malaysia and Lithuania, in addition to many referrals from high-level contacts of the organization itself, were in front of me. It would have been impossible for the client to review all of those resumes with objectivity.  If the client didn’t utilize search firm, they may have been overwhelmed with choices and ended up choosing the typical “friend of a friend”. By using a retained search firm, they were able to take a look at a variety of out-of-the-box candidates because they had someone else to sift through the resume inundation.

In addition to the overwhelming application, this was a newly created position. Such a position does not make for an easy search candidates don’t necessarily have a specific track record to review. An ambiguous position, real or perceived, can be tough to sell and even more difficult to fill. Therefore, as the recruiter, it was vitally important for me to listen to the client and to give honest feedback about their position description. I listened to their criteria and desires, and I let them know what qualifications they could expect to have filled and what were not necessarily realistic to find in a single candidate. From there, I could objectively assess the hard skills and interview with the soft ones in mind.

These are but a few instances of how a retained search was able to partner with organizations to fill much needed roles. I’d like to hear from nonprofits and even other recruiters about how retained searches helped an organization find great leaders.

Carmel Napolitano is a New York City based independent executive search consultant for the philanthropic, nonprofit, and public sectors. With over 20 years of experience, Carmel started her career in higher education fundraising, She has an exceptional  track record of placing senior staff at local, regional, national, and global organizations. She can be reached at cgnexecsearch@gmail.com.

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