For nonprofit boards and leaders in transition
Leave Well. Start Strong.
The Leadership Handoff helps nonprofit boards and leaders navigate executive transitions, from the outgoing leader’s last day to the next leader’s first months.
We carry what matters in between.
The problem
Your board is running the search. Meanwhile staff need direction, donors need reassurance and the work still needs to get done.
Board members aren’t in the day-to-day. They can’t know which relationships, routines and unwritten rules need to be passed on.
Not everything should travel forward. Deciding what a new leader needs to know, and what stays behind, takes experience few boards have.
What’s at stake
of nonprofit chief executives have a written succession plan.
BoardSource, 2024average annual turnover in the nonprofit sector, versus about 12% elsewhere.
Johnson Center, 2025the window in which senior staff often leave after an unplanned executive transition.
Bridgespan researchsalary: the cost of replacing an executive once search, onboarding and lost momentum are counted.
Industry estimatesOur approach
Every transition follows the same arc. We can step in at any point, or walk with you through all three.
The outgoing leader exits with relationships, knowledge and trust intact, and the board has a clear plan for what comes next.
Experienced support behind the scenes for the leaders holding the seat, so staff, donors and partners never feel the ground shift while the board decides.
The next leader begins with the context, relationships and confidence to lead well from day one.
In a relay, races are won or lost in the exchange zone. So are leadership transitions.
The baton pass happens in a short marked stretch of track. A fast runner can’t make up for a dropped baton.
The same is true when a leader leaves. The risk isn’t in the old leader’s tenure or the new leader’s first year. It’s in the pass, where relationships, knowledge and trust are most likely to be dropped.
Search firms fill the seat. We protect everything around it.
Services
We work with the outgoing leader and board to build a confidential exit plan, capturing critical knowledge, donor relationships and institutional history before they walk out the door.
Best time to call: the moment a departure becomes likely, whether a retirement 12–18 months out or a sudden resignation.
We don’t take the seat. We strengthen the people holding it. While your board decides what comes next, we work behind the scenes a set number of hours each week to steady staff, close urgent gaps and keep your own leaders out front.
Best time to call: as soon as you know a gap is coming, even before the timeline is clear.
We help your new leader absorb what their predecessor knew (relationships, unwritten rules, context), filtered so they get what helps them lead, without what shouldn’t travel forward.
Best time to call: as soon as your new leader is chosen, ideally before their first day.
One-on-one coaching for executives and emerging leaders in board relations, donor conversations, public speaking and confident decision-making.
Best time to call: when an internal leader is stepping up, a new leader is settling in, or your board wants to invest in its next leader.
All three stages with one confidential partner, instead of stitching together separate consultants at each step. Executive coaching can be added to any engagement.
For executives · Private Exit Planning
Many leaders carry this decision alone for months. We meet with you one-on-one, in complete confidence, to help you think it through, choose the right timing and plan an exit that protects you, your team and the mission.
How we work
We support your team rather than become its public face. Your board and staff keep the relationships.
Your internal leaders grow in confidence, so the organization is stronger when we leave.
We advise and support. Hiring, spending and governance stay with the board unless it delegates in writing.
Every engagement begins with a mutual confidentiality agreement.
Most work happens remotely, with on-site time where it matters most: staff conversations and key moments.
We take on a small number of engagements at a time, so you get experienced attention, not a junior team.
About
Irish Burch brings more than 30 years of experience spanning frontline child protection, forensic interviewing, partnership development and executive leadership. As President and CEO of an internationally recognized nonprofit organization, she oversaw a multimillion-dollar operating budget and provided oversight for two boards.
Having received a leadership handoff and later planned her own, Irish understands the challenges, expectations and lessons on both sides. Today she helps nonprofit boards, outgoing executives and incoming leaders navigate transitions with clarity, care and practical preparation, so they can leave well and start strong.
Irish Burch, Managing Principal
Confidentiality
Most boards call us before anyone else knows a change is coming. That trust is the foundation of the work.
Start a conversation
Book a free, confidential 30-minute Transition Readiness Conversation. We’ll look at where you stand and what to do first.
10 questions every board should answer before a leader leaves. Ask for a copy in the form.