The Window Before the Hire:Why the Work Before the Search Matters Most

The month of May signals change and growth. Flowers begin to bloom, the weather grows warmer (though that may be debatable in the Midwest), and people start spending more time outdoors. For many organizations, May signals something else entirely: the close of a fiscal year, the end of a program cycle, or, most critically, a leadership transition.

When a leadership departure is confirmed, a common reaction is to move quickly to fill the role. That is understandable, as there is real cultural and operational urgency to have the right person in the seat. But in that urgency, one of the most crucial steps that is often overlooked is the strategic work that should happen before the search begins.

Here’s what we often see: an announcement is made, a committee is formed, a familiar job description is updated, and the position goes live. Meanwhile, the harder questions that would sharpen the profile and attract the right candidates go unasked.

Questions like:

• What has changed about this role since the last hire, and do the title and scope reflect those changes?

• What are the agreed-upon role competencies, and how are they defined and assessed throughout the selection process?

• What does this leadership position need to absorb that it was not originally designed to handle?

• What organizational conditions need to shift before or alongside the hire?

• What does success look like at 90 days and at the end of year one?

These are not just HR questions. They are governance and strategy questions. When hiring committees and key stakeholders invest time in answering them together, the search becomes more focused, the candidate pool becomes more aligned, and the new hire is positioned to contribute with clarity rather than spend the first several months decoding what the role actually is.

A 2024 Korn Ferry study found that organizations using a rigorous, structured selection process saw nearly a 47% reduction in leadership turnover by year three, underscoring that how an organization prepares for a hire shapes outcomes just as much as who is hired. The right person still needs the right conditions to lead well. That readiness is built before Day One.

For education and nonprofit organizations in particular, the window from May through June is one of the rare times each year when slowing down is both necessary and expected. Boards are already in planning mode. Leadership teams are evaluating what worked and what did not. Community and stakeholder needs are being reassessed. With these conditions in place, the question is whether the organization uses this time intentionally.

Rather than asking, “How quickly can we get this posted?” the stronger question is, “What do we need to clarify now so the right person can lead well from the start?”

Use this window with intention and an end goal in mind. Successful searches are not just about what moved the fastest but about the focused pause to define, align, and set up from the start.