Chairs of executive boards at nonprofits face no greater challenge that leading efforts to find a new chief executive, especially at groups with records of achievement. Such was the job faced by CED Chair Rich West in finding a successor to Joan Siefert Rose. In an exclusive Q&A, he talks about the choice (Ravila Gupta) and what’s coming next for the CED as she takes over.

The Council for Entrepreneurial Development, one of the largest and most senior such organizations in the country which launched in 1984, on Tuesday named Ms. Gupta as CEO effective April 17.

Our Q&A:

  • Why do you and the board believe Ms. Gupta is the best person for the position?

Ravila has more than 15 years of senior leadership experience, has lived and worked in North Carolina for 26 years and knows the business community, and she’s an incredibly effective networker and connector.

We really couldn’t have dreamed up a better candidate!

  • Will CED make any changes in direction under a new leader?

We are absolutely committed to our expansion of support for growth stage companies because that is the area of greatest need in our ecosystem right now and that is where CED, given its network and expertise, can have the greatest impact.

Ravila is able to come in with a fresh set of eyes and determine the best way to provide that support for growth stage companies moving forward.

  • Is CED making a statement in terms of diversity in hiring its third consecutive woman as its senior leader? Why is this important?

We were looking for the best candidate for this position and we found it in Ravila.

It’s wonderful that CED continues to be an example of diversity in leadership within broader context of the innovation economy, because that is surely lacking, but we did not set out with that intention.

  • Did CED interview several other candidates for the position? Were you pleased by the quality of people who sought or were interviewed for the job?

Our search firm Waverly Partners, and the group within the Executive Committee, screened several dozen candidates from locations around the country, and interviewed eight candidates face to face.

We knew this was an attractive position, but we were pleasantly surprised by the number of high quality candidates we spoke with.

  • What are the biggest challenges for CED now that a new leader has been chosen?

Ravila will be focused on building upon the successes CED has recorded over the past few years with its expansion of support for growth stage companies. That will require more resources, more partners and better coordination among those partners.

These aren’t challenges so much as opportunities for Ravila, and CED, to help drive the success of our extraordinary entrepreneurial community.