Resource Results for "Governance Risk"
Boards on Board: Managing Governance Risk
Volunteer boards are vital partners at all nonprofit organizations. An important aspect of any board’s role is to safeguard the mission and assets of the organization. Join Melanie Lockwood Herman, executive director at the Nonprofit Risk Management Center, as she shares strategies to help streamline risk management and compliance at the board level. Watch this … Continued
Good Governance Is Sound Risk Management
By Jennifer Chandler Hauge Governance has been top-of-mind at the Nonprofit Risk Management Center of late. In Washington, DC, we’ve watched the governing board of “our nation’s museum,” the Smithsonian, re-organize its board, hold the CEO more accountable, and re-think the museum’s business strategies. This instance is one in a long line of headline-grabbing missteps … Continued
Heartfelt Risk Lessons From an Authoritarian Piano Teacher
By Christy Grano If you learned to play a musical instrument as a child, like I did, then you may agree that music appreciation does not always happen in the first few lessons. How many of us wish that our 10-year-old selves had recognized the magic of musical expression, rather than avoided practice? Like many … Continued
Got Growth? Managing Risk When Your Nonprofit is on the Rise
By Christy Grano and Melanie Lockwood Herman For several years our NRMC team has had the opportunity to work with a number of nonprofits that have grown rapidly from a small capable corps of nimble and idealistic pioneers to strong, sustainable organizations with functions, departments, and even signs of bureaucracy. We’re grateful for the opportunity to … Continued
The Risk of Regret: Not Every Mission Really Lives
By Melanie Lockwood Herman In Everybody Dies But Not Everybody Lives, rapper and spoken word artist Prince Ea challenges us to be open to risk-taking: “There was a study done, a hospital study on 100 elderly people. Facing death, close to their last breath they were asked to reflect about their life’s biggest regret… Nearly … Continued
Say Cheese! Serving Up Risk Communication
By Erin Gloeckner “How can you govern a country which has 246 varieties of cheese?” – Charles de Gaulle Some argue that with this inquiry, French general and politician Charles de Gaulle lamented the Cold War era work ethic and priorities of his French compatriots. Others assert that de Gaulle was referencing the historic nature … Continued
The Garden of Risk Oversight: Positioning the Board to Cultivate Strategic Risk-Taking
By Melanie Lockwood Herman When considering the myriad risks facing a nonprofit organization, one could identify many risks that should be safeguarded against, mitigated, or prevented if possible. Strategic risks are another animal altogether, or more appropriately, a garden of risks that—if properly tended to—will grow to fruition and advance the nonprofit’s mission and vision. … Continued
Not So Great Governance? Resolve to Reinvent the Board
By Melanie Lockwood Herman In contrast with family members, friends and staff who are devoted to their favorite teams and specific sports, I have a less loyal and more general interest in sports. And while watching live or televised events, I’m easily distracted by subliminal messages about teamwork and leadership that play out on the … Continued
Unmasking the Discipline of Risk Management
By Melanie Lockwood Herman Note: This article is excerpted from the Nonprofit Risk Management Center’s book, Ready…or Not: A Risk Management Guide for Nonprofit Executives. The discipline of risk management is incorrectly masked in mystery. Leaders of nonprofit organizations may believe that formulas can be applied to discern both the likelihood of good or harm … Continued
Going Up? Elevator Talk, Risk Management and the Nonprofit Board
By Melanie Lockwood Herman The Board of Directors sits atop the organizational chart of a nonprofit organization. Board issues are either self-initiated or are “elevated” by staff for board consideration. Both approaches are inherently necessary to the board’s governance role. And while there are myriad definitions, governance is essentially the “means in which the leading … Continued