ABOUT US
As Cook Silverman Search marks its ten-year anniversary serving the nonprofit and philanthropic sector, I want to pause and share my gratitude to our clients and candidates, alike. We have been trusted by hundreds of organizations to support leadership transitions that have helped shape missions, cultures, and communities.
Nonprofits are facing unprecedented complexity, funding cuts, workforce change, stakeholder pressure, and the increasing use of AI. This era demands a different level of clarity, alignment, and governance.
We are committed to providing ethical and exceptional service to every client we serve. We know thousands of professionals in nonprofit organizations, enabling us to help connect the best candidates with the right positions.
Victoria and Pam at Stanford
circa 1989
THE COOK SILVERMAN COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE
Talent is at a premium in the nonprofit space and many candidates can move quickly into new positions, receiving multiple offers in the same week. Cook Silverman ensures top talent connects with our clients and has a great recruiting experience.
Cook Silverman brings more than two hundred combined years of nonprofit experience, spanning all aspects of development, advancement, communications and marketing, and executive management. Our team includes individuals who have served as executive directors, development and marketing directors and other senior positions in nonprofits, and therefore have unique knowledge and abilities to evaluate skill sets of nonprofit executives. We have worked in the positions our clients hope to fill, which gives us a distinctive perspective on evaluation of the candidates.
With over 550 searches successfully completed, Cook Silverman has a long record of success: a deep bench of senior management, fundraising, marketing, finance, and communications, executives and strong connections within the nonprofit sector that makes us one of the most effective search firms in the business. In addition to our years of experience in the field, our team takes an approach that ensures we have our pulse on the market and an in-depth understanding of the needs of our clients, the potential pool of candidates, and the best methods to reach them.
OUR SERVICES
We are delighted to offer three new levels of search, that honors our successful past and keeps pace with today's changing world. These distinct search offerings are designed thoughtfully to meet organizations exactly where they are.
COUNSEL SEARCH – For smaller organizations for which a full search is cost prohibitive, and have internal capacity to actively participate in the process; Cook Silverman provides tools, guidance, screened candidates, and best practices.
CLASSIC SEARCH – This is our signature, end–to–end model where we lead the search from strategy through negotiation. (see more below)
And, to support Boards through the complexity of today’s nonprofit leadership challenges, we are introducing a new, premium model for CEO and Executive Director transitions:
CONCIERGE SEARCH – This new level of search is our highest-touch offering for Board-led CEO and Executive Director transitions. Concierge search recognizes that CEO/ED transitions are governance moments, identity moments, and culture moments.
We provide expertise in identifying, evaluating, and securing candidates. Because we work exclusively with nonprofits, we know the status of the market, the potential pool of candidates and the best ways to effectively reach them. We have efficient systems and techniques that help minimize overhead costs.
Below is an illustration of our classic search services:
Preparation We begin every search with several conversations with our clients so that we understand the opportunities and challenges of each search. In order to locate the best candidates available, it is very important to us to understand our client’s business model and the requirements of the open position.
Screening and Interviewing Based upon our outreach, we identify prospective candidates and conduct screening and in-depth, in-person interviews with every promising candidate.
Presentation Based on current market conditions, we present top candidates for your consideration.
Client Interviews We will deliver a first round of candidates for your organization to consider whom we feel are most qualified, and best fit with the demands of the position and organizational culture.
Reference Checks Once first round interviews are completed, and you have selected between one and three final candidates to bring back for a second round, we will conduct reference checks on selected candidate(s) upon request.
Placement Once you have selected a final candidate based upon the results of interviews and the candidate’s reference checks, we will be available to guide and advise the process of negotiating the terms of the candidate’s employment.
Our team includes individuals who have served as executive directors, advancement, development, and other senior positions in the nonprofit arena. We have unique knowledge and ability to reach out to and evaluate the skill sets of nonprofit professionals. We find and present candidates who best match the nonprofit’s needs.
