There are times in life when something new gets added to your story and you immediately realize it was not really new at all.

It was just another piece of the puzzle finally finding its place.

Recently, I was officially certified as an interim executive through Armstrong McGuire’s Interim Management Institute. After sharing the update on LinkedIn, I realized there may have been a little confusion. A few folks wondered if I had accepted a new job.

I have not.

Tying It Together Consulting is still very much alive and well. I am continuing to help associations, nonprofits and mission-driven organizations strengthen governance, clarify strategy and improve membership value.

This new certification simply adds another tool to the toolbox.

In addition to my consulting work, I am now available to serve in interim executive roles through Armstrong McGuire when the right opportunity arises. And the more I have learned about interim leadership, the more I realize how naturally it fits with the work I have been doing for more than 25 years.

My professional life has largely been spent in the association and nonprofit space. I have served as a CEO and senior executive for multiple organizations, worked in both traditional association settings and association management company environments, and helped boards and staff navigate governance, strategy, staffing, membership, education, operations, and organizational change.

In other words, I have spent a lot of time helping organizations figure out how all the pieces fit together.

Interim leadership is a little different from traditional executive leadership, though.

In most CEO roles, you arrive with the intention of staying. You build relationships, cast vision, set direction, and begin thinking about the long-term future of the organization.

An interim executive has a different assignment.

The job is not to move in permanently. The job is to stabilize the organization, assess what is really happening, help the board and staff move through transition, and prepare the organization for its next permanent leader.

One of my favorite ways to think about it is this: a good interim is like an ideal short-term tenant.

You are fully invested in caring for the place while you are there. You want to leave it better than you found it. You respect its history, take care of what has been entrusted to you, and make sure it is ready for whoever comes next.

But you do not need to make it your permanent home.

That distinction matters.

When an organization loses an executive, especially under difficult circumstances, there can be anxiety, uncertainty, grief, confusion, and sometimes even trauma. Staff may be wondering what comes next. Board members may be trying to steady the ship while also launching a search. Members, donors, partners, and stakeholders may be watching closely to see whether the organization is still stable.

In those moments, the question should not simply be, “Who can sit in the chair?”

The better question is, “What does this organization need right now?”

Sometimes boards take the easy route and appoint an internal staff member or a past board chair to serve temporarily. Very rarely does that work out as intended. Most of the time the organization needs someone who is experienced, objective, and not seeking the permanent role.

That is where the interim model can be so valuable.

An outside interim can listen carefully, assess honestly, name the elephants in the room, support the staff, guide the board, and help the organization move from uncertainty toward stability. Because the interim is not auditioning for the permanent job, they can often say and do what the organization most needs, even when it is difficult.

That resonates deeply with me.

One of the most important lessons reinforced through the Interim Management Institute is that an interim leader must be clear from the beginning: I am temporary, but I am fully committed.

Temporary does not mean detached.

Temporary does not mean passive.

Temporary does not mean less invested.

It means the role has a specific purpose. The interim is there to help the organization get through a season of transition, not to become the story.

I have always cared deeply about helping boards and staff make better decisions, clarify roles, strengthen systems, and align around mission. That is the heart of Tying It Together Consulting, and it is also the heart of effective interim leadership.

The work is about helping organizations move from confusion to clarity.

From anxiety to stability.

From transition to readiness.

And eventually, from interim leadership to a strong permanent handoff.

One of the things I appreciated most about the Armstrong McGuire process was the reminder that interim leadership is not just about filling a vacancy. It is structured work. It includes contracting, discovery, stabilization, implementation, transition planning, and exit. It requires listening before acting, identifying root causes instead of reacting to symptoms, and preparing the organization for the leader who comes next.

That final piece is important.

A successful interim engagement is not measured by how indispensable the interim becomes. It is measured by how ready the organization is when the interim leaves.

That is a different kind of leadership.

And honestly, it is a meaningful one.

So no, I have not taken a new job.

But I have added a new way to serve.

Through Tying It Together Consulting, I will continue helping associations, nonprofits, and mission-driven organizations strengthen governance, strategy, and membership value. And through my certification with Armstrong McGuire, I am now prepared and available to step into interim executive roles when an organization needs experienced leadership during a time of transition.

It feels like a natural extension of my story.

Because at the end of the day, whether I am consulting, facilitating, advising, or serving in an interim capacity, the work is still the same.

Helping organizations tie it together.