The Hugo House has announced its new interim Executive Director. His name is Cory Sbarbaro, and he comes from a non-profit/executive background, not a particularly literary one. The release says “His areas of expertise include organizational assessment, planning and strategy formation, executive transitions and board development.” Part of his job description is finding his replacement.

Sbarbaro has worked or is working with organizations like Nancy Bell Evans Center on Nonprofits & Philanthropy, Pacific Northwest Nonprofit Executive Leadership Institute, and the United Way of King County. This is called “playing it safe.” The full press release is after the jump, although there’s not really any reason to check it out (spoiler warning: Sbarbaro is “thrilled” to have the job!).

Hugo House Welcomes Interim Executive Director SEATTLE – Richard Hugo House is pleased to announce that Cory Sbarbaro has joined the staff as interim executive director. Sbarbaro brings extensive management, leadership and research experience to his work as a consultant and interim executive. His areas of expertise include organizational assessment, planning and strategy formation, executive transitions and board development, all of which will be integral to Hugo House’s search for a permanent executive director. “Hugo House has thriving, established programs and a talented and committed staff, so our foremost priority was to keep up that good work during this leadership transition,” said Hugo House board president Matt Carvalho. “Cory’s experience as an interim executive with other nonprofits, and his expertise in organizational management and development, will be incredibly valuable to us while we conduct our search for a new executive director.” In addition to his work as consultant, Sbarbaro is a senior advisor at the Nancy Bell Evans Center on Nonprofits & Philanthropy, which he helped launch in 2004. He was co-creator of the Pacific Northwest Nonprofit Executive Leadership Institute—an intensive, five-day learning experience for senior-level nonprofit professionals—and currently serves as lead instructor for the program. He also teaches in the Nonprofit Management Certificate Program offered through the University of Washington Extension and serves as a trainer for United Way of King County. “Hugo House is an amazing community asset, and I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to guide the organization during the search for a permanent executive director,” Sbarbaro says. With an interim director now in place, Hugo House will launch a comprehensive search for a permanent executive director in November. All classes, residencies and events at Hugo House will continue as planned, including the popular Hugo Literary Series, which welcomes authors Aimee Bender, Vikram Chandra, Pam Houston and Richard Rodriguez, among others, to Seattle audiences over the series’ second season.