Dysfunctional Leadership
If an executive has already been removed from office, the board has several options:
Promote an internal staff member up to the level of an acting executive. This can be done very quickly, and to some degree it can be can be a good option in that this person already has a short learning curve, and they can jump in and get started to keep things moving. The difficulty is that typically people that are promoted internally have skills that are more oriented toward program competencies rather than management competencies. Or if they do have management competency, it's typically not on the level expected of an executive. In addition, the internal person promoted is typically one of the victims of trauma by the executive and often lacks the objectivity needed to make hard decisions that must be made, and should be made quickly in order to salvage and the organization and its assets. If an internal promotion is made, that person desperately needs a coach, a consultant, and someone they can work with to create a very quick strategic plan on how to dig the organization out of the hole. One of the primary things that must be done as soon as possible is in the area of healing staff and healing the culture of the organization. It’s the staff that performs the work that serves the clients, and it’s the staff that interfaces with the public at large.