Note: This post is based on a webinar I co-facilitated with Erin De Vries and Kassia Randzio of Vermont River Conservancy. Thanks Erin and Kassia!

A few months back, I was approached by the Nonprofit Association of Oregon to lead a session for their Co-Director Learning Cohort. The goal of the program is to gather organizations that are using a shared leadership model (or considering such a model) to learn from each other. 

To be clear, phrases like “co-directors” and “shared leadership” can mean different things under different circumstances. In this case, we’re talking about two people – in many ways, these are co-executive directors – sharing the responsibilities and decision-making of lead staff.

For this session, I recruited Erin and Kassia to reflect on their experience as co-directors at Vermont River Conservancy (VRC). They outlined multiple advantages and challenges with this approach, as discussed below.

Birth of the co-director model at VRC

Founded nearly 30 years ago, Vermont River Conservancy is a statewide land conservancy working to “protect and restore rivers for people and wildlife.” 

When their long-time executive director and most of the staff departed in 2022, Kassia and Erin were the only employees remaining. They looked at each other and said, “How can we reorganize this?” 

They began by reverse-engineering their job descriptions, based on what they were already doing and what needed to be done, and used that exercise to build their co-director model. The board readily signed off. “They were grateful that we didn’t leave!” Kassia says.

Given their individual expertise, Erin leads the conservation work; Kassia leads on development and administration. Unlike most executive directors, Erin points out, “Neither of us needs to be an expert in everything.”

Communications: Internal and external

With this structure, one challenge is communications. Who serves as primary contact with the board – and do you need a primary contact? Who provides a consistent voice for external communications? How do co-directors communicate with each other?

The answers will vary with each organization. The point is to ask these questions with an open mind and develop answers together. This is a significant benefit. As Erin says, “We don’t suffer from executive director isolation. We have each other.”

In creating external messages to share the new management model, they took a cue from their mission. “Rivers offer an example of how to welcome change,” Kassia wrote to their members. “They change over time.”

Another message: the co-director model reinforces how VRC prioritizes collaboration, given that they already work with many partners: peer nonprofits, municipalities, private landowners, state and federal government agencies, etc. Since collaboration is in their DNA, why not demonstrate it in their leadership structure?

Of course, they used the leadership transition as an opportunity to thank and celebrate everyone: departing staff, donors, funders, and a wide range of partners.

How is the community responding?

Peer nonprofits are curious! Some are already experimenting with different leadership structures and want to learn more.

Government agencies (primary funders for VRC) don’t really care, so long as someone is accountable. 

Foundations and donors “light up,” in Kassia’s words. They see the model as more sustainable, with less potential for burnout. This increases the organization’s credibility.

Indeed, Vermont River Conservancy used the leadership transition as a fundraising hook. A recent appeal includes a “founders and board match,” highlighting that the founders still believe in VRC and are enthusiastic about the new leadership structure.

How does this model affect finances?

Stating the obvious: Having two executive directors might cost more than one, depending on your pay scale and who is transitioning from which job. 

Suggestion number 1: Do your homework by studying peer salary surveys, which are available from statewide nonprofit associations and national networks. Watch out for gender bias, which may skew the data.

If you’re significantly grant-funded, accept that program leads like Erin will have more billable hours than admin leads like Kassia. You may need to raise additional unrestricted donations and design your budget accordingly.

If you’re serious about pursuing this…

Erin and Kassia offer several specific advisories. 

• Build a collaborative staff culture before transiting to a shared leadership model.
• Prepare to lose staff. Not everyone is comfortable with this structure.
• Scale matters! This model will vary based on the size of your organization.
• Bias is likely to emerge, especially if you’re moving from male to female/non-binary leadership. Be prepared to name it and address it.

Finally: does your current management model reflect the values that inform your mission? What are you doing now to foster a collaborative culture and collaborative leadership?

Most nonprofits would benefit from asking these kinds of challenging questions – then dedicating the necessary time and emotional energy to answer them with honesty, humility, and curiosity.