Coaching Is Capacity: Why Funders Must Back Nonprofit Leaders Now

Nicky Goren , Partner & Philanthropic Advising Lead, Volution Advisors

Monisha Kapila’s LinkedIn post, “Navigating Turbulent Waters: Why Nonprofit Leaders Need Executive Coaching,” captures the emotional and strategic reality of nonprofit leadership. Her metaphors—of coaching as a lighthouse, anchor, compass, and safe harbor—ring especially true in a sector that has weathered storm after storm in recent years. Echoing Jacquelyn Davis’s LinkedIn post calling on funders to get into the arena now, I believe funders must heed the call and extend support in this moment for leadership coaching to their grantees. 

The Leadership Toll: Five Years of Unrelenting Pressure

From the pandemic’s early shockwaves to the racial justice reckoning of 2020, the economic instability following COVID, the post–COVID return to work, and today’s challenging economic landscape—nonprofit leaders have faced unprecedented pressure.

Leaders have grappled with:

• Crisis communications, staffing shifts, and funding volatility

• Remote work adaptations and uneven transitions back to in-person operations

• Increasing staff and client mental health needs

• The demands for racial equity with minimal institutional support

• Elevated scrutiny from funders and boards

• Their own fatigue and burnout masked by resilience

And the data is stark: according to a report from Challenger, Gray & Christmas, a recruiting firm, the government and nonprofit sector continues to record the highest CEO turnover of any industry, with 44 nonprofit CEO departures in June and 256 through the first six months of the year, more than any other sector. (Challenger, Gray & Christmas) And as recently reported by the Washington Business Journal, nonprofits in the Washington region, for example, are seeing unprecedented cuts to resources even as demand surges, deepening the strain. 

The Washington Business Journal highlights how nonprofit leaders are navigating higher-than-ever demand with dwindling resources—a combination that has amplified burnout and executive exits. When seasoned, values-driven nonprofit CEOs step down, it’s not just an individual departure—it’s organizational instability and lost momentum for the movements and missions they serve.

Why Foundations Should Invest in Executive Coaching for Grantee Leaders

Having led a foundation myself, I saw firsthand how investing in nonprofit leadership capacity—especially through executive coaching—can be transformative. Our grantees consistently shared that these supports helped them lead more effectively, manage transitions with confidence, and show up more fully for their teams and missions. These weren’t just “nice to have” investments—they were catalytic. When we funded leadership development – including coaching, we were strengthening entire organizations and unlocking deeper, more sustainable impact. These investments, among other things, helped:

Strengthen Leadership at the Core

Strong leadership holds organizations together. Coaching offers leaders the clarity, perspective, and reflection space they need to navigate complexity and stay mission-aligned.

Maximize Return on Program Investments

Foundations invest in programs, evaluation, and infrastructure—but without leadership support, organizations often fail to reach their full potential. Coaching helps leaders implement, adapt, and sustain strategies.

Reduce Leadership Turnover

High executive turnover disrupts strategy, relationships, and trust. Coaching supports leaders’ well-being and growth—ideally reducing burnout and promoting retention and continuity.

Practical Advice for Funders: How to Support Coaching Strategically

• Offer flexible, multi-year coaching grants that signal leadership development as a core priority and don’t put leaders into the challenging choice of having to allocate general operating support funds to that activity.

• Pair coaching with peer cohorts or learning communities to foster mutual learning and support.

• Remove eligibility barriers, especially for mid-sized or emerging nonprofits and leaders from underrepresented backgrounds.

• Trust grantees’ judgment on the type of coaching they need—whether executive, cohort-based, or peer supported.

The Time Is Now

We are at an inflection point. The demands on nonprofit leaders are intensifying. Executive burnout is mounting. And executive churn is destabilizing the sector. Foundations have a powerful opportunity to intervene.

Monisha’s framing of coaching—as lighthouse, anchor, compass, and safe harbor—captures its essential role in supporting leaders through turbulent times. Foundations that choose to fund executive coaching are making a smart investment—not just in individuals, but in organizational resilience, equity, and long-term impact.

I’ve witnessed the transformational effects of that investment. When funders back leadership capacity, they change organizations. They change communities. And they fortify the nonprofit sector at its core.