Why Does Everything Come Back to the Executive Director?

If routine questions keep returning to you, another reminder to “take ownership” may not help.

Staff may need information, authority, or confidence that an agreed decision will not be reversed without explanation.

Start with one recurring decision—not a whole category of responsibility—and make the operating agreement explicit.

Find a decision worth transferring

For a working week, note the decisions reaching you and why they came back. Use the record to examine the system, not score employees.

Separate:

• Decisions that genuinely require executive authority.
• Routine decisions another role could own.
• Exceptions that need clearer rules.

Ask staff what prevents them from acting. The answer may be missing information, overlapping authority, workload, or previous experience.

Write the decision agreement together

Element	What to clarify
Owner	Who makes the routine decision?
Information	What must they know first?
Boundary	What limits and existing policies apply?
Consultation	Whose input is needed?
Escalation	Which exception requires authorization?
Review	When will you check the arrangement?

The task and authority need to match. Someone cannot meaningfully own a decision if every ordinary choice still needs your approval.

Check that the responsibility fits the person’s role and workload.

Distinguish an update from an approval request

In a hypothetical nonprofit, a program manager may adjust routine coverage within an approved schedule and budget.

A change that reduces service availability or creates an unapproved cost goes to the executive director. Routine changes are recorded in the shared schedule.

That agreement separates three things:

• Informing leadership about a decision.
• Seeking advice while retaining ownership.
• Requesting authorization outside an agreed boundary.

Keep existing safety, financial, and governance requirements intact.

Review without automatically taking the work back

Choose a short trial period appropriate to the decision. When a routine question returns, ask which information or boundary is missing before answering it yourself.

At review, look for decisions made within the boundary, exceptions explained clearly, and fewer repeated approval requests. Ask whether the new owner has adequate support.

If overlap remains the problem, use the role-clarity exercise.

The aim is not to remove the executive director from important decisions. It is to make clear which decisions need you.

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