Kittleman & Associates Recruits CEO for National Industries for the Blind
March 26, 2024 – Following an extensive nationwide search, Chicago-based search firm Kittleman & Associates recently assisted in the recruitment of Soraya Correa as president and CEO of National Industries for the Blind (NIB), the nation’s largest employment resource for people who are blind. Kevin Lynch, who has been NIB president and CEO for more than 15 years, announced last summer that he will retire on April 30, 2024. “Soraya is an exceptional leader with the right expertise to guide NIB through its next chapter,” said Paul Healy, chairperson of the NIB board of directors. “The board and I believe her substantial experience in government procurement, plus her record of exemplary leadership, will make a positive impact on career opportunities for people who are blind.”
Ms. Correa developed extensive skills in government procurement as a contracting and program management professional, coupled with many years of experience leading and transforming organizations. A member of the Senior Executive Service, she held several leadership roles at the Department of Homeland Security.
Most recently, Ms. Correa served as chief procurement officer from 2015 until her retirement in 2021. She designed and implemented initiatives to enhance business operations and mission support provided by more than 1,400 contracting professionals, who processed more than 70,000 procurement actions totaling over $25 billion in goods and services each year. Ms. Correa currently serves as executive director of the National Contract Management Association Contract Management Institute, which provides research, studies, and analyses to enhance procurement and contracting business practices.
Ms. Correa will work closely with Mr. Lynch while she meets with NIB staff, associated non-profit agency leaders, and the AbilityOne Commission. She will connect with government customers, partners, and representatives of the blindness community, as well as other stakeholders, as she learns more about the program. On April 15, she will step into the role of president and CEO, and Mr. Lynch will become president and CEO emeritus until his retirement on April 30.
“I couldn’t be more excited about the opportunity to lead an organization comprised of such outstanding individuals united by a vitally important mission,” said Ms. Correa. “I believe that my government procurement background will be of great value in growing the organization and expanding employment opportunities for people who are blind.”
Incorporated in 1938, NIB is the nation’s largest employment resource for people who are blind, and through its network of associated non-profit agencies, the largest employer of people who are blind in the U.S. The organization creates opportunities for people who are blind to become wage earners and taxpayers, reducing their reliance on government support and increasing engagement in their communities. NIB offers career training and assists employers and employees in developing mutually beneficial workplaces.
Serving Non-Profits
Kittleman & Associates, established in 1963, is one of the nation’s oldest executive recruitment firms exclusively serving non-profit organizations. Search services include recruitment counsel, organizational assessment, development of position specifications, prospect research, source identification, candidate development, background assessment and verification, reference checking, offer preparation and transition assistance.
How Non-Profits Can Identify and Recruit Their Next Great Leader
Thanks to younger generations, interest in and support of mission-aligned organizations is surging. According to the Better Business Bureau, seventy-five percent of millennials believe that a business should have a higher purpose beyond generating capital. For Gen Z, the desire is even greater, according to a recent report from Johanna Vargas, vice president and senior associate at BroadView Talent Partners. “That’s good news for non-profits,” she says. The same purpose-driven organizations that younger generations are supporting with time and resources are the ones they hope to work for one day, according to Ms. Vargas.
The firm has led searches for the American Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition (ASPEN), Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh Foundation, Space Center Houston, Paws With a Cause, Indiana Historical Society, Community Foundation for Muskegon County, among many others.
“We work closely with our client organizations to bring candidates with varying points of views and life experiences to the search process,” the firm said. “We hire staff that reflects the broad diversity of our community and that of our client organizations. We retain a diverse group of product and service vendors, and we strive to select vendors who are committed to promoting a diverse workplace.”
Cory King, president and CEO, leads Kittleman’s search practice as well as the overall management of the firm. He focuses on CEO searches across the non-profit sector, with a particular emphasis in social services, grantmaking foundations, cultural institutions, and conservation organizations. Mr. King has been in the non-profit sector since 1998 and brings executive-level experience in higher education, healthcare, and social services.
Related: Achieving Diversity for Non-Profits
Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief; Dale M. Zupsansky, Executive Editor; Lily Fauver, Senior Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media
