What I Learned Leaving Consulting to Become an Executive Director and Why I Came Back

Before I became an Executive Director, I believed I understood nonprofit leadership.

I had worked alongside organizations for years. I had seen strong operations, committed staff, and thoughtful leadership. I understood how much care goes into running a nonprofit well.

What I did not yet understand was what happens when many reasonable decisions, made over time, collide with rapid change.

The organization was not broken

The organization I stepped into was not chaotic. It was not poorly run. It was not the result of bad leadership.

The operations were thoughtful. Processes existed. People were doing their jobs with care and professionalism. Decisions had been made with the information and capacity available at the time.

What was true, though, is that the organization had grown and changed quickly.

New demands. New expectations. Losses alongside growth. Increased complexity layered on top of existing systems that had been designed for an earlier chapter.

Nothing had failed. The context had shifted.

When reasonable choices accumulate

Like many nonprofits, systems had been adopted incrementally.

Tools were chosen based on immediate need, budget, and staff comfort. Processes were shaped to ensure people could do their work without disruption. In many cases, flexibility was a kindness, not a flaw.

Over time, that flexibility created variation.

Different workflows depending on the role. Different levels of comfort with technology. Systems used well in isolation, but not fully connected to each other. Basic security and compliance practices that had not kept pace with increased risk.

None of this came from neglect. It came from adaptation.

And adaptation works, until the pace of change accelerates.

What leadership absorbs during transition

When growth, loss, and change happen in rapid succession, leadership becomes the stabilizing force.

You hold continuity while the ground shifts. You ensure nothing drops. You translate between systems, people, and expectations. You carry the context so the organization can keep moving forward.

That is not dysfunction. That is stewardship.

But it is also where the strain concentrates.

The role quietly expands to include integration, interpretation, and risk management, often without additional structural support.

What stepping back made clear

Stepping away gave me distance, not judgment.

I could see how often nonprofits reach a point where what once worked well is simply no longer sufficient for the moment they are in. Where systems are functional but not optimized. Where compliance, security, and data flow lag behind growth, not because of negligence, but because there was never time to redesign intentionally.

That clarity reshaped how I understand leadership.

It is not about fixing mistakes. It is about recognizing inflection points.

Why I returned to this work with clarity

I came back to consulting with a deeper respect for how nonprofits actually operate.

The work I do now is not about tearing down what exists. It is about honoring it, and then strengthening it for what comes next.

It is about helping organizations move from a la carte processes to shared standards when the moment requires it. About aligning systems not just to individual comfort, but to organizational health, security, and sustainability.

This is not about control. It is about stewardship at scale.

Why The Jule Group® exists now

The Jule Group exists to support nonprofits at moments of transition.

When growth accelerates. When complexity increases. When systems are good, but no longer sufficient. When leaders need clarity, not criticism.

This work is about protecting missions by strengthening the structures that hold them.

Where I land now

Nonprofit leadership is demanding because it evolves.

Organizations change. Contexts shift. What worked before may need refinement, not replacement.

My experience taught me that strong organizations still need pauses to realign. Good systems still need integration. And that leadership deserves support when the pace of change outgrows existing infrastructure.

That is not failure.

That is growth.

And that is where my work now lives.