On October 1, Bishop Mariann Budde announced she will resign as head of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington. Then she said something most departing leaders never get to say: after the announcement, life carries on as usual for about two years (Jenkins, Religion News Service via National Catholic Reporter).
She will remain bishop until her successor is consecrated in June 2028. In between, the diocese will form a search committee, narrow a slate of candidates, and elect a new bishop in January 2028 (NCR).
You probably know Budde from her sermon on the first day of the second Trump term. With Trump sitting in the pews, she urged him to show mercy toward immigrants and LGBTQ children. It made her one of the most visible religious leaders in the country.
She used the words “Leaving Well”
Budde told Religion News Service her focus is “leaving well™️,” so her successor and the diocese can thrive once she's gone. She wants to give the next leader as much “wind in the sails” as humanly possible. She has even been studying eldership, reading about biblical models of older leaders like Moses (Salt Lake Tribune, same RNS report).
Leaving Well™️ are the words and the framework we've built this work around. Hearing this reference from a leader at that level, on that stage, matters.
She's staying, and she's stepping back from the pick
Budde isn't checking out. She plans to lead through the transition, and she says her advocacy work won't slow down until she leaves. But she'll be largely removed from the selection process itself. That's a healthy line: lead the organization through the handover, and don't choose your own successor.
Here's how that squares with what I tell leaders. I don't recommend that departing executives linger after the handoff—2-4 weeks, two months at most (see this piece on Warren Buffett's retirement). Budde's model is different. The long runway comes before the handoff, and her plan afterward is a move to Minnesota to be near her grandchildren. That's a long, visible approach and a clean exit.
One caution for boards: two years is a long time. A runway this long only works when everyone is clear about who decides what, and when the outgoing leader's energy stays on the organization, not the search. Also, a bishop is not a nonprofit executive director, and church governance differs from yours. Take the principle, not the playbook.
What the church gets right, and what it can’t teach you
I wrote a four-part series on succession lessons from the papal conclave, and Budde’s announcement echoes parts of it. The first is that the structure exists before the vacancy (Part I: White Smoke). The diocese already knows its next steps: a search committee, a slate of candidates, an election. Most nonprofits invent that process in the middle of a crisis.
The second is knowledge transfer. In Part IV: Passing the Fisherman’s Ring, I argue that departing leaders usually hand over operations but rarely share their deepest insights, the relationships, the context behind past decisions, the informal agreements. A two-year runway is a rare chance to design that exchange on purpose. Budde will be largely removed from the selection, but she can still leave her successor and the diocese a lot to work with.
The third is who gets to lead next. Budde was the first woman to lead this diocese (NCR). When a trailblazer leaves, the next transition carries its own questions, which is the ground Part III: Breaking the Stained Glass Ceiling covers. And for the politics that run under any handover, see Part II: Red Hats and Hidden Agendas.
The caveat for board members is the same as before: a diocese has centuries of structure behind it. Your nonprofit probably doesn’t, so build it now.
The reason behind the reason
Budde was open about one part of her timeline. She planned to step down sooner, but the upheaval in federal agencies hit congregations in her diocese hard, and it was “not the time.” She also talked it through with friends, colleagues, and family, and prayed on it, before deciding.
What she didn't say is that she's exhausted (and I won't put those words in her mouth). My read is that seventeen years leading a diocese, plus a national spotlight that arrived overnight, is a lot for anyone to carry. It would be surprising if it hadn't cost her something.
Here's the pattern I want boards and executives to notice:
Leaders are nudged, by themselves and by the people around them, not to name the real reason they're leaving.
Boards want a graceful story.
Funders want reassurance.
Staff want stability.
Leaders who have spent years being the strong one don't want to look depleted.
So what we hear is along these lines: “time for a new chapter” or “more time with family.” Sometimes that's true, but it often sits on top of burnout, exhaustion, funding strain, or a board relationship that stopped working.
The evidence is thin, but it points the same way. A Faunalytics survey of 16 former executive directors in animal advocacy found burnout was the most cited factor in their decision to leave (small sample, one field, so treat it as a signal). Outgoing EDs interviewed by the Chronicle of Philanthropy urged peers to leave before burnout sets in. And in my own writing on sabbaticals, I've argued that replacing a burned-out executive director can cost two to three times their annual salary once you count search, onboarding, and lost institutional knowledge.
Why the real reason matters
When the true reason stays hidden, the organization can't learn from it. A board that hears “time for a change” never asks whether the role is survivable. A funder that hears “planned retirement” never asks whether the budget made the workload impossible. The next leader walks into the same conditions, and the cycle repeats.
The honest reason doesn't have to be public. A leader can share a strategic and thoughtful public message, and still tell the board chair the truth.
What to do with this
For boards
Ask, and make it safe to answer: “What would make this role more sustainable?” Ask before your leader is halfway out the door.
Give the transition a runway. Announce early, and fund the work (see When Icons Leave Well).
Keep the outgoing leader out of the selection, and keep their role clear until the handoff.
For executive directors / CEOs
Tell your board chair the real reason first, even if the public version is more strategically safe.
Decide what you owe your organization and what you don't (see The Exit Hook).
Leave before you're empty.
Budde has a stated commitment to Leaving Well™️, a clear end date, and a two-year runway. Most nonprofits have none of the three. If you're an executive director or a board member, ask yourself: what's your runway, and who knows your real reason?
Not sure where your organization stands? Take the Transition Readiness Quiz.
Go deeper: the papal succession series
Part I: White Smoke: What the Papal Conclave Can Teach Us About Succession Planning
Part II: Red Hats and Hidden Agendas: The Politics of Succession
Part III: Breaking the Stained Glass Ceiling: Gender and Succession
Part IV: Passing the Fisherman’s Ring: Knowledge Transfer in Leadership Transitions
Also: The Exit Hook—What You Owe (And Don't Owe) When You Leave (and episode 98 of The Leaving Well Show).
Sources: Jack Jenkins, Religion News Service, via National Catholic Reporter (Oct. 1, 2026); via Salt Lake Tribune (Oct. 2, 2026); Faunalytics; Chronicle of Philanthropy (Oct. 10, 2018); Naomi Hattaway, Sabbaticals Aren't Luxuries (Sept. 12, 2025); Naomi Hattaway, Warren Buffett's Retirement (Dec. 31, 2025); Naomi Hattaway, papal succession series, Parts I, II, III, and IV.