What Organizations Get Wrong in Hiring and Promoting

The selection mistake that starts the whole cycle—and what it costs

The previous three articles in this series explored the Two Skis framework, the over-reliance trap, and the challenge of leading adaptively. This one gets specific: what organizations consistently get wrong at the very beginning of the process—before the leader ever starts.

Here's the hard truth: most of the leadership struggles I described in Parts 1–3 were set up in the hiring or promotion decision. The problem didn't start on day one of the new role. It started when the selection criteria only assessed one ski.

The Two Costly Mistakes

Mistake #1 — Promote from within based on achievement alone: "Maria is our best program person—let's make her Program Director." This feels like a reward and a logical next step. But program excellence does not automatically transfer to leadership capacity. You've moved Maria out of the role where she thrives and into one she was never prepared for. The organization pays for that gap, and so does Maria.

Mistake #2 — Hire external achievers who haven't learned to earn respect in a new culture: "We need fresh perspective—let's bring in someone with a strong track record." But track record in one organizational context does not guarantee success in another. Credentials don't automatically command respect. Trust has to be earned. And in a small organiztion where staff have deep mission commitment and institutional memory, a leader who skips that process will struggle regardless of their resume.

The common thread: both approaches select for the Achievement Ski alone, without assessing the EI ski, cultural adaptability, or willingness to earn trust through relationship.

What This Actually Costs

For small organizations, these are not abstract concerns. The math is real:

•       Replacing one $50,000 staff member costs an estimated $25,000–$75,000 in recruiting, onboarding, lost productivity, and institutional knowledge.

•       A leadership transition that goes badly—whether a promoted manager who can't build the team, or an external hire who loses staff confidence—often triggers a wave of departures among your strongest people.

•       And the mission impact compounds: programs suffer, funders notice, and the board starts asking questions.

For a small organization operating on tight margins, one failed leadership transition can set you back years. Yet most small nonprofits make the selection decision in the same way, every time, and expect different results.

What to Assess Instead

Before promoting or hiring, you need to assess both skis—not just the one that's easiest to see on a resume or in a program evaluation.

For the Achievement Ski: Can they deliver results? Have they done the work? Do they understand the mission? These are standard questions. Most organizations ask them well.

For the EI Ski: Can they build psychological safety with people who aren't like them? Have they led people through difficulty without leaving damage behind? Can they hold a hard conversation with care? Do they know how to earn trust in a new environment, rather than demand it?

For external candidates specifically: Do they have the humility to ask before they act? Are they willing to understand this culture before importing solutions from their last one?

These questions are harder to ask and harder to answer. But they are the questions that predict whether a leader will build or erode your team.

The Honest Assessment

The best external hires have both skis AND the humility to earn respect through understanding, not demand it through credentials. The best internal promotions happen when you've developed both skis before the promotion, not after.

The Problem Started in the Selection Process

If you're an Executive Director or board member reading this and nodding—because you've lived this pattern—the question isn't who to blame for the last hire or promotion. It's what to change in the next one.

Start assessing for both skis. Ask behavioral questions that surface emotional intelligence, not just achievement. Build a development plan before the promotion, not after the struggle begins. And if you're hiring external, structure the first 90 days around relationship-building, not results-proving.

The mission is too important to keep making the same selection mistake.

📣 Call to Action

Have you seen this pattern in your organization—a promotion or hire that looked right on paper but missed the EI ski entirely? I'd value hearing what you saw. Part 5 closes the series with what a better approach actually looks like in practice—including a model that works for organizations with small budgets and real constraints.