Nonprofit Leadership Development: What’s Your “Plan A” for Growing Future Leaders?

Nonprofit organizations often recognize their leadership development gaps but struggle to address them effectively. Surveys by Bridgespan highlight leadership development and succession planning as the most significant weaknesses in nonprofits, with over two-thirds of surveyed leaders doubting their organization’s ability to build strong internal and external leadership pipelines.

While resource limitations are a common challenge, a bigger issue lies in the behavior of nonprofit leaders, who often only address leadership development during succession crises—when it may be too late. To tackle this, a shift in mindset is required. Bridgespan’s guide, Nonprofit Leadership Development: What’s Your “Plan A” for Growing Future Leaders?, advocates for proactive, systematic leadership development rather than ad hoc crisis responses.

At the core of this approach is Plan A, a structured three-year strategy. Plan A outlines an organization’s evolving leadership needs, identifies potential future leaders, and specifies actions to enhance their leadership skills. While the future may not unfold exactly as anticipated, having such a plan allows organizations to develop leaders intentionally and effectively, preparing them for future transitions. This is implemented through five interconnected processes outlined in Bridgespan’s guide. By adopting this approach, nonprofits can transform leadership development from a reactive practice into a deliberate investment, ensuring they are better equipped to navigate leadership transitions and build a sustainable pipeline of capable leaders.