While nonprofit social services are developing rapidly in post-socialist countries, little is known of their leadership. This research examines models of leadership as perceived by social service administrators in Croatia. Technical management with limited stakeholder involvement is recognized as most prevalent, though inadequate in many respects. More relational styles are considered desirable, but not feasible at present, while advocacy-oriented and purely Western approaches are more strongly rejected. We analyze these findings in the context of social legacies, dependency on state funding, Western aid paradigms, and fiscal crises commonly found in post-socialist countries. We assess implications for future development of, and research on, nonprofit leadership in these settings.