What Actually Belongs in a Charity CEO Role

The thing which keeps many charity leaders up at night is the overwhelming scope of their role, and no one else quite understanding what it takes. The feeling that they are spinning a dozen plates just to keep everything afloat. Juggling funding bids, safeguarding procedures, staff conflicts, board papers, stakeholder relationships, and somehow they still have to maintain a strategic vision for the charity. 

Sound familiar? This feeling of being pulled in every direction simultaneously, is endemic among charity leaders. And whilst in some ways it’s so clear what you are responsible for and what belongs in your role (the strategic development and leadership of the charity and fulfilling its charitable aims) the reality of what you've accumulated through necessity, habit, or organisational expectations can be very different 

The consequences of this can be serious, the strategic work gets postponed indefinitely, your wellbeing suffers under the pressure, and the organisation ultimately receives less effective leadership. But it doesn't have to be this way. 

How Your Role Got So Big 

There are many reasons the CEO can expand beyond your job description 

The historical hangover. Many CEOs continue performing tasks from previous roles. The fundraising director who becomes CEO still writes funding bids. The operations manager turned CEO still sorts out challenges with service stakeholders. These tasks come to you naturally, you automatically know what to do and can provide a sense of achievement, unlike the sometimes nebulous work of executive leadership. Ultimately these tasks are comfortable and enjoyable. 

The gap-filler. When resources are tight, it’s reasonable for leaders to step in to cover gaps, after all sometimes the work just has to be done. But what begins as a temporary measure can becomes a permanent addition to your role even once the resource is there. 

The responsibility creep. New requirements emerge, and without deliberate decisions about where these responsibilities belong, they default to your plate. 

The identity trap. Many charity leaders derive deep satisfaction from hands-on work from directly delivering services. Keeping your hand in can feel essential for maintaining your connection with the charities purpose, even when they don't fall within your responsibilities anymore. 

Lack of induction and guidance. Many leaders I’ve worked with haven’t had the induction or guidance they should have when they take on their role. When stepping into the CEO role, especially if there are problems which need to be fixed, it can feel natural & necessary to get involved in all aspects of leadership, the challenge is once these issues are addressed and appropriate systems are in place how to step back and let go of what doesn’t belong to you. 

These factors can turn the leadership role into an unmanageable collection of disparate tasks. The question becomes: what actually belongs in a charity CEO role, and what doesn't? 

Core CEO Responsibilities 

While every organisation differs, certain responsibilities form the essential core of charity executive leadership: 

Strategic oversight and implementation. Translating your mission into clear strategic priorities, creating an implementation plan everyone understands, and making sure they are implemented effectively.  

Board relationship and governance. Building an effective partnership with your chair, supporting board development, ensuring appropriate governance, and facilitating the board's strategic decision-making with clear information and options. 

Senior team leadership. Developing, supporting and holding accountable your senior team, fostering a healthy organisational culture, and ensuring appropriate structures for delivery. 

External representation and partnerships. Being the external face of your organisation with key stakeholders, developing strategic partnerships, and advocating for your cause at a systemic level. 

Organisational health and sustainability. Ensuring financial stability, appropriate risk management, legal compliance, and alignment of resources with strategic priorities. 

These core responsibilities require significant time for reflection, planning, & relationship-building, to enable you to respond thoughtfully to emerging challenges. When your workday is interrupted by operational tasks which don’t fit in your remit, it inevitably impacts on your ability to lead strategically.. 

What Doesn't Belong (Usually) 

The following responsibilities usually belong elsewhere in the organisation, the challenge, of course, is that many charities, especially smaller ones, don’t have the capacity for these functions to sit elsewhere. Creating a genuine tension; these tasks need doing, but they prevent the CEO from fulfilling their core leadership responsibilities. 

Operational delivery management. Directly overseeing day-to-day service delivery, managing frontline staff, or handling routine operational decisions that could be delegated to others. 

Technical specialist functions. Detailed finance tasks, fundraising bid writing, IT troubleshooting, or HR processes that could be handled by specialist staff or external support. 

Administrative tasks. Meeting scheduling, basic correspondence, data entry, or document formatting that could be handled by administrative support. 

Crisis responses. Not every problem requires your direct intervention, yes you need to be aware, but you don’t need to deal with it. Creating clear processes helps ensure you're only tackling what you need to. 

How to Find Clarity in your Role 

If you're feeling overwhelmed, pulled in all directions and suspect you’re holding onto work that isn’t yours, these steps can help create greater clarity in what you should hold onto and what you should let go of. 

Conduct a role audit. Track your activities for two weeks, categorising each task as mine, could be delegated, or belongs to another role. You might want to also note whether these tasks leave you feeling energised or note, this can be a great insight to why you’re holding onto certain tasks. Be honest about which activities you continue doing because they are your comfort zone. 

Plan how you can delegate. For responsibilities that don't belong in your role but currently have no other home, create a clear plan. Do they sit in another role, or can they provide an opportunity for development and succession planning? Or do you need a new resource whether that’s internal or external support?  

Get the board involved. Many boards inadvertently contribute to role confusion through unclear expectations. An honest conversation about priorities and capacity can make sure everyone is clear about expectations and where you should be focussing. 

Protect strategic time. Block time in your calendar for the thinking, relationship-building, and planning that only you can do. Treat this time as sacred, it’s essential for your strategic work, and will prevent you working in a reactive way.  

Remember that this isn't about doing less, not working hard or being committed. It's about focusing your limited time and energy on the tasks that create the greatest value for your organisation. A helpful question is ‘is this a good use of my time, and what am I hoping to achieve by doing this?’ 

What doesn't belong in your role that you could begin handing over this coming week? Your organisation deserves your best strategic leadership, and that requires having the courage to let go of what's not yours. 

 If you need help finding clarity in your role, book a call.