in a non profit, what is the difference between the president and the executive director?
jeff g
18 years ago
in a non profit, what is the difference between the president and the executive director?
Three answers:
therainbowseeker
18 years ago
It varies from organization to organization. Many use the two terms to define the chief executive staff position of the organization. In other organizations, the President is the presiding board officer and not a staff position. I've seen other organizations in which the president acts in both capacities (not advised due to inherent conflict of interest issues). To avoid confusion, I recommend that organizations structure their bylaws so that the "Chair" is the presiding board officer, and the Executive Director is the chief executive staff position.
tiffany
18 years ago
Depends on the organization and the country, but president is usually an unpaid job on the board whereas the executive director is usually the paid head honcho. And, although the exec. dir. gets paid, it is generally the volunteer board members who make the major decisions.
In some organizations, the board members at the higher levels are paid.
?
18 years ago
In a large corporation the President makes overall rules and the executive carries them out. In smaller operations, there's no difference: each position means that person is the chief executive officer.
"The buck stops here" is at that person's desk.
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