Frequently Asked Questions

Cause Strategy Partners brings more than a decade of experience supporting nonprofit boards with governance and leadership development. Our team understands the nuances of board-executive relationships and has developed the EDPA to reflect best practices in nonprofit executive evaluation. Working with an independent third party ensures objectivity, encourages candid feedback, and produces a more credible, useful assessment than an internally managed process.

The EDPA assesses the Executive Director's performance across key leadership dimensions including strategic leadership, board relations, organizational management, external relations, and financial stewardship. It collects perspectives from board members and eligible staff to provide a comprehensive view.

The EDPA does not assess individual board member performance, organizational health broadly, or staff satisfaction. It is focused specifically on the Executive Director's leadership performance as experienced by those who work most closely with them.

Yes. While the EDPA uses a proven framework and standardized survey instruments, the process can be tailored to reflect your organization's specific priorities. During onboarding, the Board Chair can identify particular areas of focus, strategic goals, or contextual factors that should be considered in the assessment. These are incorporated into the survey design and analysis.

The EDPA is most effective when the Executive Director has been in their role long enough for board members and staff to have meaningful observations about their performance — typically at least six months. For newly appointed Executive Directors, we recommend waiting until there is sufficient experience to evaluate before conducting a formal assessment. In the interim, boards may consider a less formal check-in process.

No. The EDPA supports the Board's evaluation responsibility — it does not replace it. The assessment collects and synthesizes feedback, but the Board retains full ownership of the performance conversation, the evaluation itself, and any decisions that follow. The EDPA provides the Board Chair with the information and structure needed to lead that conversation effectively.

The EDPA focuses on assessment and synthesis. The final deliverables — the ED Performance Assessment Report and Board Chair Discussion Guide — provide a strong foundation for the Board Chair's conversation with the Executive Director. However, EDPA does not include post-assessment action planning, coaching, or implementation support. Boards that want additional support in those areas can discuss options with Cause Strategy Partners separately.

Yes, and many organizations choose to do so. An annual EDPA creates a consistent rhythm of evaluation that strengthens governance over time. Returning organizations benefit from year-over-year continuity, and the process becomes more efficient as participants become familiar with it. Returning organizations are eligible for the BoardLead Partner rate.

The EDPA is primarily an assessment tool — it collects and synthesizes feedback to give the Board a clear, credible picture of the Executive Director's performance. However, the insights it produces naturally support development by highlighting strengths and identifying areas for growth. The Board Chair and Executive Director can use the findings to inform professional development goals and priorities.

Confidentiality and anonymity are central to the EDPA process. All responses are submitted directly to Cause Strategy Partners, and individual responses are never shared with the Board Chair, Executive Director, or anyone at the organization. When synthesizing feedback, we take care to present themes and patterns without attributing specific comments to individuals. This approach helps manage sensitive dynamics by ensuring that participants can provide honest feedback without concern about identification.

The EDPA collects feedback from all voting board members and, at the Board Chair's discretion, eligible senior staff members who report directly to the Executive Director. The Board Chair determines which staff members, if any, should be included based on their level of interaction with the Executive Director. The Executive Director also completes a self-assessment as part of the process.

The EDPA can accommodate co-chair arrangements. During onboarding, the co-chairs determine which of them will serve as the primary point of contact for the process and who will lead the performance conversation. Both co-chairs participate in the survey as board members, and the deliverables are shared with both.

Participants receive individual survey invitations with clear instructions and a reasonable completion window. The surveys are designed to be straightforward and can typically be completed in 20–30 minutes. Cause Strategy Partners monitors participation and can send reminders as needed. The Board Chair is kept informed of overall response rates (but not individual responses) so they can encourage participation.

Yes. All survey responses are submitted directly to Cause Strategy Partners. Individual responses are never shared with the Board Chair, Executive Director, or anyone at the organization. The final report presents synthesized themes and patterns, not individual responses.

Anonymity is preserved through several safeguards. Responses are submitted to an independent third party (Cause Strategy Partners), not to anyone within the organization. The synthesis process focuses on identifying themes across all responses rather than attributing comments to individuals. When the respondent pool is small, we take additional care to present findings in ways that cannot be traced back to specific individuals. Demographic or role-based breakdowns are only included when the group size is large enough to maintain anonymity.

The EDPA process typically takes 8–10 weeks from registration to delivery of the final report. This includes onboarding and setup (1–2 weeks), the survey collection period (3–4 weeks), and analysis and report writing (3–4 weeks). The timeline can vary based on the organization's responsiveness during onboarding and participant response rates during the survey period.

We recommend planning backward from when the Board Chair wants to have the performance conversation with the Executive Director. For organizations with a June 30 fiscal year end, starting the EDPA in March or April provides ample time for the process to be completed before the summer board meeting. For organizations with a December 31 fiscal year end, starting in September or October is typical. The key is to allow 8–10 weeks and account for any periods when board members or staff may be less available (holidays, summer vacations).

The EDPA is designed to minimize the administrative burden on the Board Chair. The primary time commitments are: completing the onboarding information (30–45 minutes), reviewing and approving the participant list and any customization (15–20 minutes), completing their own board member survey (20–30 minutes), and reviewing the final deliverables in preparation for the performance conversation. The Board Chair does not need to manage survey distribution, follow up with participants, or compile results — Cause Strategy Partners handles all of that.

The ED Performance Assessment Report and Board Chair Discussion Guide are delivered to the Board Chair. The Board Chair determines how and with whom the report is shared, including whether and how to share findings with the Executive Director, the full board, or an executive committee. Cause Strategy Partners can advise on best practices for sharing results, but the decision rests entirely with the Board Chair and board.

That is the Board Chair's decision. Some Board Chairs share the full report with the Executive Director, while others share a summary or discuss key findings verbally during the performance conversation. Cause Strategy Partners can advise on approaches, but we respect that each board's communication style and relationship with their Executive Director is unique. The Board Chair Discussion Guide includes guidance on navigating this decision.