Leadership role
Executive Vice President
A senior executive just below the chief executive, usually leading several functions or a major part of the organization.
Reporting and scope
Reports to the Executive Director / CEO or President. Authority usually spans several departments or the organization's main operating units.
Core responsibilities
- Leads a large portfolio of functions and the vice presidents within it
- Takes part in strategy, budgeting and board reporting as a member of the executive team
- Acts for the chief executive when needed
- Directs major initiatives across departments
- Represents the organization with key funders, partners and government agencies
How it differs
The COO has a defined operations mandate, while an EVP may hold any combination of functions. A Senior Vice President ranks one step lower. Where the EVP is the designated number two over all operations, compare against COO data too.
By organization size
Most small and mid-sized nonprofits have no EVP. The title appears mainly in large health systems, universities and national federations, where the EVP may oversee thousands of staff.
Filings from the last five years mapped to this role commonly report titles such as: Executive Vice President; Executive VP; EVP; Executive Vice-President; Exec VP; Executive Vice Pres