Volunteers lead all segments of the Association. Their work is essential to the field of advising as they identify the needs of the various members and develop the means for fulfilling those needs while building a lifelong network of colleagues and friends.

The 2013 NACADA Leadership Task Force report stated that a leader or leadership is characterized by positions held and roles undertaken that advance NACADA’s mission. They further defined a NACADA leader as "...any member who takes on a formal or informal role to influence to promote the field of advising in support of the strategic goals of the Association. Leadership includes elected and appointed positions, as well as informal roles including but not limited to (for example) influencing the field of writing for a NACADA publication, chairing a Region sub-committee, or serving as a faculty mentor at a NACADA institute."