CEO Onboarding Pilot Program Prepares for First In-Person Convening

Earlier this year, the first-ever national CEO Onboarding program for chief executive-level organizational leaders in the American Jewish community launched with its initial cohort. The eleven members of cohort one—a diverse representation of federations, service agencies, and other organizations that connect Jewish individuals and families to contemporary Jewish life experiences—already have held virtual convenings and begun one-on-one coaching and mentorship with experienced CEOs, thought leaders, and expert consultants. One of the most compelling parts of CEO Onboarding is the strength of our cohort.

One of the most compelling parts of CEO Onboarding is the strength of our cohort. We come from different backgrounds and experiences, but we now are growing together as a powerful network. I know these colleagues will be resources to whom I can reach out long after the program officially concludes. And it is incredibly gratifying to know we are being invested in in this way, given the opportunity to learn together and to learn from veteran leaders both inside and outside of our field.

–  Stefanie Rhodes, Slingshot Fund, member of CEO Onboarding Cohort One

From June 5 – 7, CEO Onboarding will bring the entire cohort together for the program’s first in-person convening in Chicago. This gathering includes some sessions geared specifically to leaders of Jewish organizations and other sessions on leadership strategies and approaches relevant to any field. Among the areas of focus and skill building is one on Adaptive Leadership led by Marty Linsky, Co-Founder, Cambridge Leadership Associates, and Karen Lehman, Principal, Adaptive Leadership LLC; a session on the Psychology of Giving led by Marian Stern, Principal, Projects in Philanthropy; a session on critical work in Financial Planning and Fiduciary Responsibility led by Hilda Polanco CPA, CCSA, Founder and Managing Director, Fiscal Management Associates; and a discussion on Israel and the American Jewish Community led by Ariel Roth, Ph.D., CEO, The Israel Institute and John Ruskay, Ph.D., CEO, Emeritus, UJA Federation of New York; among others. The convening was originally scheduled to be in North Carolina, but has been moved after the state passed its anti-LGBTQ law.

Over the next decade, literally hundreds of Jewish 501c3 organizations in the United States will hire new CEOs—creating both significant organizational uncertainty, but also unique windows of opportunity to equip incoming leaders with enhanced skills to achieve and to maintain organizational excellence. CEO Onboarding invests in new CEOs within their critical first 18 months in their new position to capitalize on this opportunity. The program incorporates executive coaching, in-person convenings, and a unique on-the-ground Israel experience in a holistic approach to professional development for a distinguished group of communal organization CEOs.

Cohort one members are:

CEO Onboarding is stewarded by TBF Consulting, a management consulting practice that emphasizes leadership development and transformational change. CEO Onboarding is funded by the Jim Joseph Foundation and other funders and is being operated in partnership with Leading Edge.