Leadership & Succession Planning Best Practices

These Leadership & Succession Planning Best Practices serve as a resource for Clubs and SIGs to help build and maintain a strong succession plan and volunteer pipeline. A strong succession planning process creates stability within the organization, eliminating the need for frantic searches to fill open positions. It encourages new ideas and creates an enjoyable team dynamic—attracting new volunteers and instilling a sense of pride in participation.

This guide provides suggestions and best practices to support Club and SIG leaders in the following key areas:

• Recruiting Process: Establish a clear strategy for attracting, vetting, nominating, electing, and onboarding new board members
• Nomination Process: Implement a formal recommendation or nomination process for selecting new board members
• Election Process: Communicate a Bylaw-defined election process to all members
• Bylaws and Governance: Incorporate specific provisions in your Bylaws regarding board membership, including eligibility criteria, nomination and election procedures, confirmation, term lengths, renewals, and removal processes
• Board Culture and Leadership: Foster a positive board culture and effective leadership
• Onboarding Resource Management: Develop tools and resources to streamline the onboarding process for new members

Also, access the New Leadership Checklist: A key aspect of onboarding new leadership successfully is to transition information to incoming volunteer leaders.  This handy checklist will ensure a smooth transition!