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By Melanie Lockwood Herman
“The future is already here—it’s just not very evenly distributed.” – William Gibson
Whether you’re finalizing your FY 2020 budget, wrapping up a 2020 work plan, or prepping talking points for a seasonal pitch to donors, my guess is that your agenda this month is fairly future-focused. As risk advisors, the NRMC team is future-obsessed. We help our Affiliate Members and Consulting clients ponder “alternate futures” (a term we picked up from author Randy Park), and imagine future decisions, actions, and circumstances that could catapult their missions forward or force inconvenient detours.
Our perspective on how risk management actually adds value to a nonprofit mission is ever-evolving. Many leadership teams continue to believe that risk management is a lengthy list of risks, or a process diagram showing steps. We disagree. We explain to our clients that the heart and soul of effective risk management is having timely conversations about ‘what if’ and ‘what’s next’. Yes, we’re talking about meetings, not instant messages and verbose memos.
Is your team regularly engaging in timely conversations about risk and surprise and your bold plans to change the world? Thoughtful, reflective conversations about good bets and bad ones? To help get your synapses firing for these important conversations, we’ve drafted a handful of possible question prompts for your next huddle.
Next year will be full of surprises for your nonprofit. And those surprises won’t be evenly distributed among mission-driven organizations; some of us will face more, and others less. The key is doing your best to be as prepared as you can to leverage the wonderful surprises that await, and skillfully cope with the dreaded ones. Whether your risk function or risk program is doing just fine or stuck in a rut, don’t let months pass before attempting to resuscitate, revamp or reimagine your approach. Reach out to NRMC if you need help developing or fine-tuning your risk plan for 2020.
Melanie Lockwood Herman is Executive Director of the Nonprofit Risk Management Center. She welcomes your questions about the evolving risk landscape, hot button risk worries, and future-focused risk planning. You can reach Melanie at 703.777.3504 or Melanie@nonprofitrisk.org.
“First let me congratulate you on a conference well done. I had a great time at the Nonprofit Employee Benefits Conference and walked away with some valuable tools and questions that we’ll need to be addressing in both the short and long term. Thanks to you and your staff for all you do to provide us with quality resources in support of our missions.”
“BBYO’s engagement of the Center to conduct a risk assessment was one of the most valuable processes undertaken over the past five years. Numerous programmatic and procedural changes were recommended and have since been implemented. Additionally, dozens (literally) of insurance coverage gaps were identified that would never have been without the work of the Center. This assessment led to a broker bidding process that resulted in BBYO’s selection of a new broker that we have been extremely satisfied with. I unconditionally recommend the Center for their consultative services.
“Melanie Herman has provided expert, insightful, timely and well resourced information to our Executive Team and Board of Directors. Our corporation recently experienced massive growth through merger and the Board has been working to better integrate their expanded set of roles and responsibilities. Melanie presented at our Annual Board of Director’s Retreat and captured the interest of our Board members. As a result of her excellent presentation the Board has engaged in focused review which is having immediate effects on governance.”
“The Nonprofit Risk Management Center has been an outstanding partner for us. They are attentive to our needs, and work hard to successfully meet our requests for information. Being an Affiliate member gave us access to so many time- and money-saving resources that it easily paid for itself! Nonprofit Risk Management Center is truly a valued partner of The Community Foundation of Elkhart County and we are continuously able to optimize staff time with the support given by their team.”
“The board and staff of the Prince George’s Child Resource Center are extremely pleased with the results of the risk assessment conducted by the Nonprofit Risk Management Center. A thorough scan revealed that while we are a well run organization, we had risks that we never imagined. We are grateful to know that we have now minimized our organizational risks and we recommend the Center to other nonprofits.”
Great American Insurance Group’s Specialty Human Services is committed to protecting those who improve your communities. The Center team has committed to delivering dynamic risk management solutions tailored to nonprofit organizations. These organizations have many and varied risk issues, hence the need for specialized coverage and expert knowledge for their protection. We’ve had Melanie speak on several occasions to employees and our agents. She is always on point and delivers such great value. Thank you for the terrific partnership and allowing our nonprofits to focus on their mission!