Pam Iorio plans to step down as head of Big Brothers Big Sisters

Pam Iorio will step down next year as president and CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of America.

The board of the Tampa-based nonprofit organization is beginning a national search for her successor, Iorio said in an email sent late Thursday afternoon to agency leaders.

Iorio has led BBBSA since March 2014. Under her tenure, BBBSA moved its national office from Dallas to Tampa. Total public support and revenue grew from $23.4 million for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2015 to $31.9 million for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2018, the most recent year for which information is available.

Iorio’s total compensation for fiscal year 2018 was $487,797, according to the most recent IRS Form 990 report, a required filing by organizations that are exempt from income tax.

Iorio announced her plan to step down now to give the board enough time to find a new CEO, she wrote in the Feb. 27 email.

“A thorough search and selection process for a national non-profit leader can often take ten months or more, and it takes additional time to ensure a smooth transition. Consequently, it is important to me that we have a sensible and well-executed succession plan so we can continue our positive trajectory,” she wrote.

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The BBBSA board that will select the new CEO is chaired by Ken Burdick, executive vice president at Centene (NYSE: CNC) and former CEO at WellCare Health Plans, which recently was acquired by Centene.

Iorio said in her email that leading BBBSA for the last six years has been a privilege and a highlight of her professional life.

“Together, we have come a long way. However, when the Board asked that I continue at the end of my first term as CEO, I agreed knowing that I would not remain past its conclusion next year. As much as our work together means to me, I remain committed to my plan to step down as CEO at the end of my current term, while continuing to support this incredible organization in other ways,” she wrote.

Iorio’s contract ends in June 2021, a spokeswoman for BBBSA said. The organization will remain in Tampa, the spokeswoman said.

Stephen Koch, president and CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Tampa Bay, said in his own email that Iorio has assured him she would continue to be an advocate for the local agency once she retires.

“I feel that we were very fortunate to have her as our national CEO; she has been a great leader for us and will continue to be until her successor is named toward the end of this year,” Koch wrote.

Iorio is looking forward to becoming a full-time grandmother, Koch said.

Her daughter recently had a baby, Iorio said, speaking at University of South Florida Muma College of Business’ Conversation with a CEO on Feb. 20.