Well-managed leadership transitions can create fundraising and engagement opportunities that will position the new president for success, according to two advancement leaders speaking at the recent CASE District II conference.

Daniel Helwig, dean of college advancement for York College, and David Beidleman, vice president for institutional advancement and community relations at Elizabethtown College, shared an outline of a presidential transition plan during their presentation, "Through the Transition: Managing Advancement Efforts through a Presidential Succession."

"When a president is leaving under positive circumstances, it provides an opportunity to lift up the president and lift up the institution," Beidleman said. He noted that fundraisers could explore naming opportunities, scholarships or ways to honor the departing president with donors—including trustees—who had strong relationships with or respect for the departing leader.

"You have to take the temperature of your leader and your volunteers to decide what's appropriate," Helwig added. He also advised fundraisers to set goals for closing certain gifts with the outgoing president to maintain a sense of purpose while his or her term is winding down.

Among the other advice offered:

• During a search, "everybody wants to share, to speculate, about the type of leader" the next president should be. Engage the campus community in the conversation and communicate frequently about the status of the search, even if some of the details remain confidential.
• Every president has champions and detractors. Use the transition to re-engage those who may have felt disenfranchised during the outgoing leader's administration.
• Plan for the new leader throughout the search process. For example, plan a year of introductions, lay out options for an inaugural, create a book of profiles on top donors and key issues, draft introduction letters and build a transition budget.
• Work with newly named presidents before they start so they can step into their roles well-prepared and make decisions quickly. Don't forget to engage the presidential spouse as appropriate.
• Celebrate the arrival of the new president with a press conference, articles in the campus magazine and introductory events with faculty, staff, students, community leaders, alumni, donors and more.
• Remember that it's natural for advancement staff to be anxious about new institutional leadership; model the behaviors you want them to emulate.

This article is from the March 2013 issue of BriefCASE.
Please share your questions and comments with Pam Russell via e-mail at russell@case.org or by telephone at +1-202-478-5680.