Why an interim development executive?

Losing your chief development officer or developing director can bring your fundraising program to a halt or result in critical tasks getting overlooked due to lack of staff or skills. An experienced interim development executive gives the ED/CEO and board of directors time to assess the organization's development needs and find the right person without sacrificing momentum and quality. Existing fundraising staff benefit from leadership and the support they need to do their best during a transition. The interim executive can also assist in onboarding and mentoring the incoming staff at the end of the assignment.

Many nonprofits have used the same fundraising playbook for years. A fund development audit evaluates your efforts against best practices and helps identify what's working and what needs to be retired or refreshed.

An astonishing number of nonprofits don't even have a written fund development plan that aligns with their mission and strategic or business plan. A fund development plan is your nonprofit's roadmap for success to keeping your development team focused on achieving key objectives and results.

About St. Cloud Leadership

Stephanie Casenza, MS, APR, CRFE, established St. Cloud Leadership to support nonprofits needing a seasoned development professional during management and organizational transitions, such as medical leaves, resignations or terminations. She can provide onboarding support once the permanent staff returns or is selected. If an interim executive is not what your organization needs, she can conduct a fund development audit or create a realistic fund development plan to guide your efforts in a thoughtful, goal-oriented way.

Stephanie offers a breadth and depth of experience in nonprofit management, development and public relations with nonprofits ranging in size from three to 11,000 employees in social and human services, higher education, healthcare and the arts in the San Francisco Bay Area and San Diego. This includes roles as executive director of two nonprofits. She has also served on 15 nonprofit boards of directors.

She possesses strong operational skills and excellent interpersonal skills balanced by a direct, decisive approach and collaborative nature to mobilize a team or structure a project. This allows her to quickly assess your nonprofit's needs and provide the leadership necessary to keep your development program on course during a staffing crossroads.

Stephanie is a Certified Fundraising Executive (CFRE) and earned the universal accreditation for public relations (APR) from the Public Relations Society of America. She is a member of the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) Golden Gate Chapter, and the Development Executives Roundtable, for which she was a board member and past president. She graduated with a Master’s in Executive Leadership from the Knauss School of Business at the University of San Diego and a BA in Journalism and Political Science from San Diego State University.

Learn more about Stephanie's career by visiting her LinkedIn profile