The New England Not-For-Profit Accounting Advisor

Not-for-profit organizations are the in the midst of a leadership shortage. Research compiled by Bridgespan projects that organizations will need nearly 80,000 new senior managers per year, significantly more than the number of senior managers who are currently employed.

Boards of directors, revenue generation, and community interfacing make not-for-profit management unique. Not-for-profit Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) and Executive Directors must balance mission objectives with an ever-more challenging economic reality while serving as the face of the organization to potential donors and the population the organization serves.

Supply and Demand. We learned of these terms in Econ 101. Conceptually, when Supply equals Demand an economic equilibrium is achieved. If an increase or decrease in either Supply or Demand don’t move in lockstep, things get thrown out of whack and something has to change until Supply and Demand once again achieve some semblance of balance.

For the last several years, the not-for-profit sector and the boards that govern them know all about such an imbalance. They’ve been forced to confront this issue when it comes to identifying the next generation of leadership talent to helm the organizations they serve. And, the problem is only going to be become more acute in the next 20 years. Why? Well, there is a perfect storm of contributing factors. Before turning our attention to what’s happening on the Supply side, let’s examine the dynamics that have influenced Demand.