Cooper Coleman LLC

About Us

Cooper Coleman is a full-service recruiting and consulting firm partnering exclusively with nonprofit organizations, foundations, and research and academic institutions to drive meaningful growth. We move organizations forward by placing the right leaders in the right roles at the right time, and we help to strengthen management and fundraising capacity to amplify their mission and impact.

We work with organizations of all sizes locally, nationally, and globally. Our practical, actionable, strategic approach helps our partner organizations achieve durable solutions and sustainable growth.

We represent our partners as if we are a member of their team—with passion, integrity, and a deep understanding of their challenges and opportunities. We intuitively know what makes the work they do unique and essential.

We are an LGBTQ+ owned business that embraces demographic, experiential, sexual, and cultural inclusion. We believe everyone is better when leadership reflects the diversity of its people and when an organization reflects the diversity of those it serves.

Cooper Coleman LLC

Our Team

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The Team Moving You Forward!
An ever-growing cadre of incredibly talented professionals extends the capacity and capabilities of our team. They include recruiters and organizational development experts, frontline fundraisers, planned giving experts, communicators, marketers, designers—each of whom has been hand-selected from our previous work experience and meets our rigorous expectations for performance, expertise, and continued professional development. Meet a few of them below.

Cooper Coleman LLC

Solutions And Expertise

We take extraordinary measures to preserve dignity in the recruiting experience. Recognizing there is a person behind each resume, we treat each candidate with humanity, clarity, and respect—as the assets they are to our sector, the third-largest driver of the U.S. economy.

The right leaders in the right roles are essential for success. The most successful organizations do not settle on their leaders, they strategically and meaningfully choose each one.

Recruiting the best candidates can be protracted and time-consuming. For that reason, we do the heavy lifting to find your ideal candidate, so you can focus on other priorities. We help organizations assess their unique needs to build a comprehensive profile of the professionals they require. We leverage our extensive network of passive and active candidates throughout the sector to place the right leaders in the roles most essential to your success.

Solutions
  • Advisory Services
  • Culture Shaping
  • Executive Coaching
  • Executive Search
  • Interim
  • Leadership Consulting
  • Leadership Develop.
  • Mgmt. Consulting
  • Org. Chart Mapping
  • Succession Planning
Industries
  • Associations
  • Colleges/Universities
  • Cultural Arts
  • Education
  • Foundations
  • K-12
  • Non-Profit
Functions
  • Board/Governance
  • Business Development
  • CEO/President
  • Development
  • Diversity & Inclusion
  • General Management
  • GM/Operations
  • Human Resources
  • Marketing & Sales

Cooper Coleman LLC

News Briefings

Cooper Coleman Recruits CEO for Family Equality

Following a nationwide search, Chicago-based Cooper Coleman LLC has recruited Darra Gordon as the new CEO of Family Equality in New York City. The search was led by Johnny Cooper, founder and CEO of Cooper Coleman. “Darra’s decades of leadership in the LGBTQ+ movement is an achievement, itself,” said Mr. Cooper. “Her ability to drive strategic growth, build

Cooper Coleman Recruits Chief Philanthropy Officer for East Coast Zoological Foundation

Following a nationwide search, Chicago-based Cooper Coleman LLC has placed Robyn Ducharme as the chief philanthropy officer of East Coast Zoological Foundation (ECZF). The search was led by Johnny Cooper, founder and CEO of Cooper Coleman. “Robyn’s track record of scaling development programs and leading high-performing teams makes her the perfect fit to help ECZF achieve its

The Strategic Benefits of Using Retained Search Firms for Non-Profit Leadership Recruitment

In the wake of the 2024 election, the dynamic landscape for non-profit organizations has shifted, making the need to secure and retain top-tier leadership more crucial than ever. Recruiters tell Hunt Scanlon Media that strong, effective leadership is now key to driving mission success and ensuring long-term organizational sustainability in an increasingly complex environment. A

Cooper Coleman Seeking COO and Chief Philanthropy Officer for the East Coast Zoological Foundation

Chicago-based Cooper Coleman LLC has been retained by the East Coast Zoological Foundation (ECZF) to lead searches for the organization’s first chief operating officer and their next chief philanthropy officer. This strategic expansion is integral to ECZF’s continued impact on conservation and community engagement, encompassing Brevard Zoo and the new Aquarium campus in Port Canaveral. “ECZF is a

Cooper Coleman LLC

Press Releases

Cooper Coleman Partners With East Coast Zoological Foundation To Lead Chief Operating Officer And Chief Philanthropy Officer Searches

CHICAGO, IL – Cooper Coleman LLC, a nationally recognized executive search firm specializing in nonprofit and social impact organizations, is honored to be selected by the East Coast Zoological Foundation (ECZF) to lead searches for the organization’s first Chief Operating Officer and their next Chief Philanthropy Officer. This strategic expansion is integral to ECZF’s continued

Cooper Coleman Launches CEO Search For Family Equality

CHICAGO, IL – Cooper Coleman LLC, a nationally-ranked boutique executive search firm specializing in nonprofit and social impact organizations, has been retained by Family Equality to lead the search for its next Chief Executive Officer. The nonprofit organization, which works to ensure everyone has the freedom to find, form, and sustain their families by advancing

Cooper Coleman Announces Placement Of Vice President + Chief Development Officer At Rainforest Flow

CHICAGO, IL – Cooper Coleman LLC, a nationally-ranked boutique executive search firm specializing in nonprofit and social impact organizations, is proud to announce the successful placement of Maggie McDow as Vice President + Chief Development Officer at Rainforest Flow following an extensive national search. Rainforest Flow, an international nonprofit organization founded by Executive Director Nancy

Cooper Coleman Expands Executive Search Team With Veteran Nonprofit Leaders, Ben Bisbee and Dr. J. Michael Durnil

Chicago, IL – Cooper Coleman LLC, a national boutique nonprofit-focused executive search firm, welcomes two new Directors of Executive Search: Ben Bisbee and J. Michael Durnil, Ph.D. These new appointments come at a time of significant expansion for Cooper Coleman, reinforcing the firm’s commitment to driving meaningful growth and impact for nonprofit organizations. Ben Bisbee

COOPER COLEMAN LLC FACILITATES SEMINAL APPOINTMENT OF AVERY BELYEU AS CEO OF HOUSTON’S MONTROSE CENTER

March 1, 2024 9:00 AM Central Standard Time CHICAGO, IL – Cooper Coleman LLC, a leader in retained executive search for the nonprofit sector, is proud to announce the successful placement of Avery Belyeu as the new Chief Executive Officer of the Montrose Center, one of the nation’s largest LGBTQ+ centers. This appointment follows a

Cooper Coleman LLC

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