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Reunited With United Way
Author: Kevin Lynch, UW NEXT Member and Interim Executive Professional 8/31/23 |
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In my long career as a CEO/ED of social impact organizations, I had many experiences with the United Way, as an applicant/grantee, community partner, vendor and, going all the way back to my first professional job in 1980, as the coordinator of my company’s United Way workplace campaign (wherein all new or increased givers got to smash a whipped cream pie in our President’s face!)
So it was with familiarity, a bit of nostalgia and great interest that I took a call last fall from the team at Third Sector Company, about the job of Interim CEO for the United Way of Central Minnesota (UWCM), in St. Cloud, Minnesota, about 75 miles from my home in Minneapolis. This would become my second Interim CEO/ED engagement, and it surely won’t be my last.
A couple of years earlier, after several decades leading nonprofits and social enterprises, I had found my calling as an Interim CEO, in what will likely be the final phase of my active career. I believe it is time for a transfer of power in the nonprofit sector. As a 66 year old, straight, white, U.S.-born, native English speaking, healthy, abled, cis-gendered male, I don’t think I should be taking up a “permanent” CEO seat any longer. As an Interim CEO, I am privileged to use my accumulated skills and experiences to help nonprofits navigate the tricky waters of executive transition to strong, diverse new leaders.
In 2021, I took Third Sector’s Interim Executive Academy, a training program I would highly recommend. I gained immense practical knowledge, and came away with three big concepts:
With my placement at UWCM, I was an early part of a nascent partnership between UW NEXT and Third Sector. I think this is fortuitous for the future of United Ways. With the generational shifts and the “great resignation” occurring throughout the nonprofit sector, hundreds of UW CEO spots will be opening in the coming years. Much research is now showing the value of using an Interim CEO to help an organization catch its breath and recalibrate, rather than rushing headlong into a new CEO. By partnering to place trained interims in these jobs, both UW NEXT and Third Sector are realizing their missions and serving the sector well.
One aspect I would specifically commend is the ongoing coaching provided, via Third Sector, to its placed executive. I was very lucky to be taken under the wing of David Nicole, an experienced United Way CEO. While I knew quite a bit about helming an organization, I was pretty rusty on the state of United Ways today, and he patiently helped me bridge the gap.
If you are a United Way facing a leadership transition, I would exhort you to learn more about the value of an Interim CEO. And if you are a seasoned leader who thinks you have the temperament for interim leadership, the Third Sector Academy might just be the best time and money you could spend preparing yourself for some real fun! The delightful Carole Peters can certainly set you up with any contacts or information you need!
With gratitude,
Kevin Lynch
So it was with familiarity, a bit of nostalgia and great interest that I took a call last fall from the team at Third Sector Company, about the job of Interim CEO for the United Way of Central Minnesota (UWCM), in St. Cloud, Minnesota, about 75 miles from my home in Minneapolis. This would become my second Interim CEO/ED engagement, and it surely won’t be my last.
A couple of years earlier, after several decades leading nonprofits and social enterprises, I had found my calling as an Interim CEO, in what will likely be the final phase of my active career. I believe it is time for a transfer of power in the nonprofit sector. As a 66 year old, straight, white, U.S.-born, native English speaking, healthy, abled, cis-gendered male, I don’t think I should be taking up a “permanent” CEO seat any longer. As an Interim CEO, I am privileged to use my accumulated skills and experiences to help nonprofits navigate the tricky waters of executive transition to strong, diverse new leaders.
In 2021, I took Third Sector’s Interim Executive Academy, a training program I would highly recommend. I gained immense practical knowledge, and came away with three big concepts:
- The Interim CEO’s role is fundamentally different from a permanent one’s. As important as the new things I needed to learn as an Interim were the old things I needed to unlearn from my decades as a permanent CEO.
- Interim CEO work is not for everyone, and certainly not for the faint of heart. You have to be nimble, a quick study, able to grasp the big picture, decisive, communicative, thick-skinned and direct, all while possessing a high level of emotional intelligence.
- An interim CEO can and should effect transformational change, rather than just keeping a seat warm.
With my placement at UWCM, I was an early part of a nascent partnership between UW NEXT and Third Sector. I think this is fortuitous for the future of United Ways. With the generational shifts and the “great resignation” occurring throughout the nonprofit sector, hundreds of UW CEO spots will be opening in the coming years. Much research is now showing the value of using an Interim CEO to help an organization catch its breath and recalibrate, rather than rushing headlong into a new CEO. By partnering to place trained interims in these jobs, both UW NEXT and Third Sector are realizing their missions and serving the sector well.
One aspect I would specifically commend is the ongoing coaching provided, via Third Sector, to its placed executive. I was very lucky to be taken under the wing of David Nicole, an experienced United Way CEO. While I knew quite a bit about helming an organization, I was pretty rusty on the state of United Ways today, and he patiently helped me bridge the gap.
If you are a United Way facing a leadership transition, I would exhort you to learn more about the value of an Interim CEO. And if you are a seasoned leader who thinks you have the temperament for interim leadership, the Third Sector Academy might just be the best time and money you could spend preparing yourself for some real fun! The delightful Carole Peters can certainly set you up with any contacts or information you need!
With gratitude,
Kevin Lynch
