We are an all-volunteer, foster-based animal rescue organization. One of our key challenges is recruiting leadership talent with some knowledge of animal welfare. Do you have any recommendations on how to build an effective leadership team? -Marilou Chanrasmi, Pet Haven Inc., Director of Human Resources, Minneapolis, Minn.
First of all, congratulations on the work you are doing. Animal welfare is a very personal issue for me, and I believe I've read about your organization. In recruiting an effective leadership team, there are several key factors:
1) Recruitment sources. If you're looking for someone that can mobilize around animal welfare, you need to define appropriate backgrounds and sources for those people and target them accordingly.
2) Behavioral traits. You need to identify the behavioral traits that are mandatory in your organization (they differ from organization to organization). Examples may be compassion, public advocacy, collaborative skills, etc. You need to include among these traits inspiration, commitment, and other qualities you define as uniquely necessary for leading volunteers.
3) Leadership skills. Of course, you need to define required background and skills for the leadership job itself, as well as the skills necessary to contribute to the organization at large.
For a more complete view of targeted leadership selection and development, please refer to my Ask ACT page
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