Revolving DODs

It’s a common topic of conversation and it’s been given a recent new spark by a US survey of nonprofits by Compass Point . How come certain Directors of Development roles rotate so frequently?
“All too often, nonprofit organizations pin their hopes and dreams for fundraising on one person—namely, the development director. And, our survey data confirm that many of the fundraising challenges facing nonprofits today can be traced to high turnover and other problems in the development director position”.
Having been a director of development and having watched and work with many of you, some of the insights ring clearly. Unrealistic expectations, lack of resources, lack of engagement in fundraising by CEO and Board, a failure to understand process and methodologies of fundraising.
My worst experience of all of these at once was taking on a role attracted by a juicy target ( I was still young and eager to impress) only to discover that there was no agreed case for support, no identified prospects and not even a functioning database.
But hang on! Does the US experience, as reflected in the report really ring true of the Australasian environment? I am not sure that it does. I am not sure that the situation is nearly as stark here. Many of not the majority of the Directors of Development that I know has been in their roles for some time. Think around your colleagues.
Whilst some express frustration, a lot are committed to the challenges of their roles and achieving admirable results.
What do you think?