Courtney K. Ford, ACC, CFRE, MBA
Founder and CEO, CKF Collective
Courtney K. Ford coaches nonprofit CEOs and C-suite executives, and advises the boards beside them. She has held the seat herself and has served as an interim executive five times.
Her work starts from a simple truth that organizations often overlook: leadership success is shaped as much by the conditions around the role as by the individual in it. She can tell when a challenge is the leader’s to solve and when it belongs to the board or the organization, and she says so.
5× Interim Executive
Firsthand executive leadership experience across nonprofit and cultural organizations.
Hosting “Courage in the C-Suite: Real Talk on Breaking Barriers and Driving Change” with Clyde B. Jones III, Chief Development Officer of GLAAD, and Mary Ann Sprinkle, Director of Development at Vero Beach Museum of Art, at Fundraising Day New York, June 12, 2026.
Courtney is an ICF Associate Certified Coach (ACC). She holds an MBA from the Global Leaders Institute. She earned the Leadership and Performance Coaching Certification through the Brown University School of Professional Studies and ACT Leadership, and she holds certificates from the Interim Executives Academy and the Succession Planning Bootcamp, a program of Third Sector Company. She works one-on-one with CEOs and senior leaders through Beyond the Hire, a six-month executive coaching engagement, and with boards and executive teams through CKF Collective’s advisory work.
She brings more than 20 years of experience in nonprofit and cultural leadership. Across her career, she has helped nonprofit organizations raise more than $1 billion. Before founding CKF Collective, she served as Chief Development Officer at Miami City Ballet, where she helped secure $240 million in three years. Her earlier roles include the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York Philharmonic, Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, Cooper Union, and The Boys’ Club of New York.
Courtney leads a national study of what helps leaders succeed at large nonprofit and cultural institutions. It brings together nearly 70 interviews she conducted with executives, board leaders, funders, and recruiters, and Beyond the Search, a survey of more than 650 respondents conducted in partnership with Arts Consulting Group. The findings shape CKF Collective’s coaching and advisory work. Read the research →
She is Co-Founder and Board Chair of the Cultural Foundation of Broward, and serves as Board Member of the Kaleidoscope Dreams Foundation, Advisory Board Member of Memoirs of Blacks in Ballet, and Education Committee Member of the Association of Fundraising Professionals Miami Chapter. She is also a CFRE Ambassador and a member of the International Coaching Federation.
A first-generation college graduate from Appalachia, Courtney credits a ballet teacher and a librarian with changing the course of her life. Her journey informs her commitment to widening tables, opening doors, and helping leaders elevate their game.
Out in the World
CONVENINGS & CONFERENCES
Moderating a conversation on responsible leadership in the age of AI with James Campanella, Christopher Simmonds, Pedro A. Santos Acosta, and Julii Oh, convened with City National Bank and Orr Group at Miami Dade College’s AI Center, May 13, 2026.
Hosting a roundtable with nonprofit leaders at Related Ross in West Palm Beach, convened with City National Bank and Orr Group, May 14, 2026.
PODCASTS
Success Leaves Clues Podcast · September 21, 2026
From Executive Leadership to Entrepreneurship: Courtney K. Ford’s Story
WRITING & PRESS
Featured in Nonprofit Quarterly · August 26, 2026
As Employers Pull Back on Public Inclusion Efforts, Accountability Matters More
By Jennifer Johnson
Work with Courtney. Book a confidential fit conversation → · Explore executive coaching →
