Very good article!
Many EA orgs are start-ups so it’s natural for them to start with a relatively inexperienced team. However, it’s normal for start-ups to bring in senior people at the top as they grow rather than hiring from the bottom, which is what most EA orgs seem to.
The best CEO for a 5-person organisation is rarely the same as the best CEO for a 100-person organisation. CEOs need to get better at recognising their own weaknesses and Boards need to get better at transitioning founders out of the CEO role.
In my opinion, EA orgs also need to increase the weight of experience and decrease the weight of moral philosophy /​ being in certain cliques.
I also wonder if commercial Boards understand that growing the business is ultimately more important than looking after the CEO emotionally or similar. So they exert pressure to perform, including potentially ‘levelling’ senior staff, that nonprofits are less likely to do.
Couple that with a lack of supply for these jobs (I don’t know how many senior people are clamouring to work for EA orgs, versus people who want to be CEO of a 100-person company) and I think it leads to stagnation.
Very good article! Many EA orgs are start-ups so it’s natural for them to start with a relatively inexperienced team. However, it’s normal for start-ups to bring in senior people at the top as they grow rather than hiring from the bottom, which is what most EA orgs seem to. The best CEO for a 5-person organisation is rarely the same as the best CEO for a 100-person organisation. CEOs need to get better at recognising their own weaknesses and Boards need to get better at transitioning founders out of the CEO role. In my opinion, EA orgs also need to increase the weight of experience and decrease the weight of moral philosophy /​ being in certain cliques.
I also wonder if commercial Boards understand that growing the business is ultimately more important than looking after the CEO emotionally or similar. So they exert pressure to perform, including potentially ‘levelling’ senior staff, that nonprofits are less likely to do.
Couple that with a lack of supply for these jobs (I don’t know how many senior people are clamouring to work for EA orgs, versus people who want to be CEO of a 100-person company) and I think it leads to stagnation.