Research on the Role of Development Directors

For more than 10 years, Meyer and CompassPoint have worked in partnership to learn about the tenure, career paths, and professional development challenges of nonprofit executive directors—and to spark national conversation about the importance of supporting and sustaining leaders. This partnership brought you Daring to Lead, and now CompassPoint, with lead funding support from the Evelyn and Walter Haas, Jr. Fund, is turning its attention to development leadership.

Survey for Executive Directors and Development Staff

Meyer, along with funders and nonprofit organizations across the country, has partnered with CompassPoint and the Evelyn and Walter Haas, Jr. Fund to conduct a national research project exploring the role of development director in nonprofit organizations. Through this research we hope to deepen the sector’s understanding about what successful development leadership looks like and how nonprofit leaders can better identify and support the talent they need in this essential role.

Approximately 3,000 respondents from across the country have participated in a survey about the leadership experiences, successes and challenges, career paths, and professional development needs of fund development staff of nonprofits across the country. Data will be collected and analyzed by CompassPoint, and the report summarizing the data will be published at the end of the year. It will be shared nationally with nonprofit and philanthropic sector leaders.

We look forward to sharing the results with you as part of an ongoing dialogue about supporting our sector’s leaders.

If you have questions please contact Erin Lingren, Research Associate at CompassPoint, at erinl@compasspoint.org, 415-541-9000 ext 329.