August 25, 2026
The importance of succession planning for Trustees.
Succession planning is essential to strong charity governance.
Strong governance is rarely accidental. Behind every effective charity board is a group of trustees who bring together the right combination of skills, experience, judgement, and commitment to the organisation’s purpose.
Yet one of the most important aspects of good governance is also one of the easiest to postpone: succession planning.
Too often, trustee recruitment begins only when somebody announces they are leaving. The result can be a hurried search, an extended vacancy or, worse, the appointment of someone because they are available rather than because they are genuinely the right person.
Succession planning turns trustee recruitment from a reactive exercise into a strategic one.
Start Before There Is a Vacancy
Every board should have a clear picture of when trustees’ terms of office expire, which individuals are likely to step down and what knowledge or experience could be lost when they do.
But effective succession planning goes further than maintaining a timetable.
Boards should regularly ask: What skills do we have today, and what skills will we need tomorrow?
A charity planning significant growth may need greater commercial or financial expertise. An organisation embarking on digital transformation might benefit from technology or data experience. Others may need stronger fundraising, communications, property, safeguarding, investment or lived-experience representation.
The board you needed five years ago may not be the board you need for the next five.
Diversity Requires Deliberate Action
Succession planning also creates an opportunity to think seriously about board diversity.
If recruitment repeatedly takes place through existing trustees’ personal and professional networks, boards risk reproducing themselves. A genuinely open search can reach candidates from different sectors, professions, communities and backgrounds who may never have considered becoming a trustee.
That is particularly important when charities want their governance to better reflect the people and communities they serve.
It also means looking beyond the traditional trustee CV. Some of the strongest candidates may not have held a trusteeship before. What matters is whether they bring the judgement, values, skills and perspective the organisation needs.
Rather than waiting for vacancies to arise, boards should anticipate the skills, experience, diversity and leadership they will need for the future.
Don’t Forget the Chair
Perhaps the most important succession decision a board will make concerns its Chair.
A strong Chair shapes board culture, builds the relationship between trustees and the executive team, encourages constructive challenge, and ensures governance remains focused on mission and impact.
Waiting until a Chair announces their departure before considering succession can therefore create significant organisational risk.
Chair succession should be discussed well in advance, including whether credible internal candidates exist or whether an external search would bring fresh leadership and perspective.
How can the Hiring Department help?
At The Hiring Department, we believe trustee recruitment deserves the same strategic attention as recruiting a senior executive.
We work with charities and non-profits to understand not simply who is leaving, but what the organisation needs next.
That can include reviewing board composition and skills, helping develop the trustee or Chair brief, identifying potential gaps, reaching candidates beyond established networks, proactively searching for individuals with the required experience and supporting a fair and rigorous selection process.
Crucially, organisations do not need to wait for a vacancy before speaking to us.
The best succession planning starts early.
Because ultimately, trustee succession isn’t about replacing one person with another.
It is about building the board your organisation will need for its next chapter.
Contact Us
For an informal and confidential discussion about this article, or on any other subject, please contact our Founder & CEO, Philip Nelson, on 020 3590 9978 or via email at philip.nelson@thehiringdept.com.
Philip has over twenty years of experience in charity governance and executive search and currently serves as a Trustee of Coram Beanstalk and as the Policy Development Lead for Heritage & Tourism at The Green Party.
