The following web sites offer a number of publications (from brief thought pieces to full-length books) related directly to the executive transitions process; some also include downloadable tools that could be used by a transition and search committee:

BoardSource
BoardSource increases the effectiveness of nonprofit organizations by strengthening boards of directors through their consulting practice, publications, tools, and membership program.

Bridgestar
Bridgestar’s mission is to support and strengthen nonprofit organizations by enhancing the flow and effectiveness of passionate and highly skilled leaders into and within the nonprofit sector.

CompassPoint Nonprofit Services
CompassPoint is a consulting, research, and training organization providing nonprofits with management tools, strategies, and resources to lead change in their communities. With offices in San Francisco and Silicon Valley, CompassPoint works with community-based nonprofits in executive transition, planning, boards of directors, finance systems, business planning, fundraising, and technology.

execSearches.com
execSearches.com is an online source for recruiting mid-level and executive professionals in the nonprofit, education, healthcare, and government sectors.

Opportunity Knocks
Opportunity Knocks is a national online jobsite focused exclusively on the nonprofit community.

TransitionsGuides
TransitionGuides is a consulting and educational services company that enables organizations to capitalize on opportunities that come with transitions.

Albert, Sheila. Hiring the Chief Executive: A Practical Guide to the Search and Selection Process. Washington, DC: BoardSource, 2000.

Annie E. Casey Foundation. Executive Transition Monographs (Series)

Adams, Tom. “Founder Transitions: Creating Good Endings and New Beginnings,” 2005.

Adams, Tom. “Stepping Up, Staying Engaged: Succession Planning and Executive Transition Management for Nonprofit Boards of Directors,” 2006.

Kunreuther, Frances. “Up Next: Generation Change and the Leadership of Nonprofit Organizations,” 2005.

Kunreuther, Frances, and Patrick Corvington. “Next Shift: Beyond the Nonprofit Leadership Crisis,” 2008.

TransitionGuides & CompassPoint Nonprofit Services. “Capturing the Power of Leadership Change: Using Executive Transition Management to Strengthen Organizational Capacity,” 2004.

Wolfred, Tim. “Building Leaderful Organizations: Succession Planning for Nonprofits,” 2008.

Wolfred, Tim. “Interim Executive Directors: The Power in the Middle,” 2005.

Axelrod, Nancy R. Chief Executive Succession Planning: The Board’s Role in Securing Your Organization’s Future. Washington, DC: BoardSource, 2002.

Bridges, William. Managing Transitions: Making the Most of Change. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley Publishing Company, 1991.

Carlson, Mim and Margaret Donohoe. The Executive Director’s Survival Guide: Thriving as a Nonprofit Leader. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley & Sons, 2003.

Cornelius, Marla, Patrick Covington, and Albert Ruesga. Ready to Lead? Next Generation Leaders Speak Out. San Francisco: CompassPoint Nonprofit Services, 2008.

Editors. Planning for Succession: A Toolkit for Board Members and Staff of Nonprofit Arts Organizations. Chicago: Illinois Arts Alliance, 2004.

Gilmore, Thomas. Making a Leadership Change: How Organizations and Leaders Can Handle Leadership Transition Successfully. Bloomington, IN: Authors Choice Press, 2003.

Gilvar, Barbara. The Art of Hiring Leaders: A Guide for Nonprofit Organizations. Boston: Gilvar Publications, 2006.

Linell, Deborah, Zora Radosevich, and Jonathan Spack. The Executive Directors Guide: The Guide for Successful Nonprofit Management. Boston: United Way of Massachusetts Bay, 2002.

Redington, Emily, and Donn Vickers. Following the Leader: A Guide for Planning Founding Director Transition. Leadership Report No. 1. Columbus, OH: The Academy for Leadership and Governance, 2001.

Stevens, Susan Kenny. “Helping Founders Succeed.” Grantmakers in the Arts Newsletter 10, no. 2 (Autumn 1999).

Wolfred, Tim. “Stepping Up: A Board’s Challenge in Leadership Transitions.” The Nonprofit Quarterly 9, no. 4 (Winter 2002): 14–19.