About Us
About Northampton Advisors from its Founder
I served as a trusted advisor to nonprofit healthcare boards of directors for over thirty-five years. Over that time, I observed that while most people agree to serve as directors out of a sincere desire to advance the organization’s goals, too often they are unprepared to fulfill the critical obligations they are undertaking. Equally concerning was that these well-meaning directors, once on the board, often never developed the skills and knowledge to allow them to become effective leaders. I concluded that boards need to improve their recruitment and onboarding processes and make a significant commitment to ongoing board education.
It also became clear to me that the structure and operating processes of some nonprofit boards virtually guaranteed that the board could not operate effectively and in a conflict-free manner. These structural flaws periodically led to major reputational, regulatory, or financial problems for the agency, which sometimes ended in a crisis from which the agency could not recover.
Northampton Advisors advances its mission of building better nonprofit boards by publishing the Nonprofit Governance Blog, sharing its perspective in professional forums and providing consultative services to boards and their leaders.
Robert E. Leamer
Principal Advisor and CEO
Our Services
Governance Assessments
Assessments are a governance “check-up” which can identify organizational & procedural flaws before they lead to problems.
Recruitment & On-Boarding
Leadership quality and board continuity are maintained through an effective recruitment and onboarding process.
Board Education
Boards need to be committed to a structured continuing education process that is supported by all directors.
Board Crisis Management
During a crisis, knowledgeable and experienced support can help the board make well-informed leadership decisions.
