Resources
Five Low-Cost Ways to Inspire Driver Safety
The best way to avoid risk related to vehicle and driver safety is to avoid ever driving people and property to fulfill your mission! Yet that option is fantasy, rather than feasible, for nonprofits with U.S. and international operations. Most organizations believe in driver safety but expecting volunteer and staff drivers to memorize a voluminous … Continued
High or Dry: Weed and the Workplace
By Melanie Lockwood Herman Is your nonprofit workplace a “drug-free” zone? Although nonprofit leaders are in agreement that impaired staff pose an unacceptable risk to the safety of people who serve and receive services, the legalization of medical and recreational marijuana creates a host of challenges for nonprofit employers who wish to take a stand … Continued
Technology Mishaps: Planning for IT and Communications Disasters
By Christy Grano For most of us, the word “disaster” usually brings to mind a natural disaster like a hurricane or a tsunami, but in the risk management world technology disasters immediately come to mind. An unexpected loss of data or communication can bring an entire organization to a halt if power, internet, email, or … Continued
Best of Risk Management Essentials
Explore this RISK eNewsletter filled with some of our most popular issues of Risk Management Essentials (RME), our magazine published three times each year. Visit the RME archive for more issues and articles! Manage Risk with an Eye for Ethics Ethics serves as a foundation for the risk management work initiated by many NRMC clients … Continued
A Blueprint for Facility Risk Management
By Eric Henkel Nonprofits own and operate many different kinds of facilities. Although in other business functions, risk may be less visible or apparent, the facilities we occupy are under our feet and above our heads every day. From warehouses to recreational spaces to commercial kitchens and traditional office space, the facilities that nonprofits occupy … Continued
Facility Agility: Planning for Facility Emergencies
By Erin Gloeckner What is facility agility? Facilities might be static assets that can’t be considered agile, but nonprofit leaders must remain agile in order to resume or maintain operations in the wake of a crisis or emergency. The NRMC team has heard more than a handful of horror stories about nonprofit leaders who believed … Continued
Lost in Space: Managing Facility Rental Risks
By Melanie Lockwood Herman The goal of maximizing the use of your nonprofit’s facilities is an admirable one. For many organizations, permitting—or encouraging—other nonprofits to use temporarily or regularly vacant space is a practical way to advance your organization’s reputation in the community and support the missions of kindred agencies. Despite the myriad potential upsides … Continued
Managing Facility Risks
Whether you rent, lease or own the building and grounds where your nonprofit provides services and programs, you are responsible for certain levels of maintenance and safety. The best ways to manage facility risk is to involve the people on the front line and their supervisors in creating the policies and procedures that they need … Continued
Hitting the Nail on the Head: Prioritizing Safety at Your Nonprofit
By Emily Stumhofer Countless Center consulting clients and Affiliate Members list safety “Safety incidents at a nonprofit can result in the loss of life or permanent injury, plummeting employee morale, reputational damage, insurance claims and costly financial and human resource burdens for the nonprofit.” risks at the top of their concerns. Yet some organizations—especially … Continued
Year-Round Tips for Sports/Recreation Programs
By the Nonprofit Risk Management Center Sample waivers, check lists and practical help with topics identified here can be found in Playing to Win, A Risk Management Guide for Nonprofit Sports and Recreation Programs. The book aims to help the program administrator and leader, whether in a sports organization or other nonprofit, determine effective, practical … Continued
Guidelines for Establishing Rental/Lease Policy
By the Nonprofit Risk Management Center Establishing policies for the rental, lease and use of your facilities will make it clear to all parties what is expected. A policy will be set by the board and followed by the staff. An established policy will help the executive director explain the conditions for permission to use … Continued
Baby, It’s Hot Outside
By Melanie Lockwood Herman Eight long months ago, in an article titled “Baby, It’s Cold Outside,” I wrote about how increasingly cold temperatures prompted me to reflect on the idea that thoughtful planning and goal setting go “hand in glove” with effective risk management. Now that the temperatures in the Mid-Atlantic are hovering uncomfortably close … Continued
Facilities Risk Management: Understanding Leasing Exposures
Q: Our nonprofit leases space from other entities for our office and occasional special events. What exposures do we have because of this? A: Leasing relieves you from some obligations and exposures with regards to repair, maintenance and compliance with regulations, however, it’s important to know that you still have facility exposures. Your nonprofit may … Continued
Risk Management for Rental Properties
How Landlords Can Protect Themselves Legally When Renting Their Land to Outside Groups by Stanley P. Wellman, Esq. and Stephanie P. Karn, Esq. Most property owners and landlords appreciate fully the risks and potential liabilities that can occur when they operate campgrounds, conference centers, and other facilities open to the public on their property. These … Continued
Relocating Risks: A Primer for Nonprofits on the Move
Relocating Risks: A Primer for Nonprofits on the Move By Barbara B. Oliver