Meet, Greet, Grin and Adjust - RISK eNews

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A SOURCE for Tools, Advice, and Training to control risks… so you can focus on your nonprofit’s mission.
October 8, 2014 Meet, Greet, Grin and Adjust By Melanie Lockwood Herman After a whirlwind month during which we hosted three, back-to-back risk conferences, life at the Nonprofit Risk Management Center has returned to “normal.” What’s normal? Working with dedicated leaders from a diverse array of mission-directed nonprofits on projects ranging from the development of a cloud application for one client’s 2,800 stakeholder organizations, to performing risk assessments and designing in-person and online training. During a planning session for one of the workshops we’re delivering later this month, our team began talking about how personality types and communication styles contribute to the success of a meeting. And since we generally don’t know the personalities and styles of the nonprofit staff members who will be attending one of our custom workshops, we need to be prepared for anything. On that topic, Director of Client Solutions Kay Nakamura shared two articles that poke fun at the personalities that too often derail thoughtful agendas and the important goal of engaging everyone around the table. If you’ve ever attended a brainstorming session, you’ve probably met a few of these troubling attendee types. From the Black Enterprise article, “Top 5 Most Annoying—And Productivity-Stealing—Personalities in a Meeting,” meet Mr. Talk Alot and Ms. Micro-Issue: ·         Mr. Talk Alot: According to writer Janell Hazelwood, what delights this meeting attendee most is “the sound of their own voice.” She adds that Mr. Talk Alot is also the participant most likely to elaborate on points that need no further elaboration or engage in distracting side conversations. ·         Ms. Micro-Issue: This label is assigned to the attendee who cleverly derails the agenda and draws the conversation to a topic that is of great interest and relevance to her, but is arguably off-track and inapplicable to the rest of the group. From the Fast Company article, “The Top Ten Meeting Personalities,” meet the Multitasker, the Disrupter and the Interrupter: ·         The Multitasker: According to Jackie Yeaney, Chief Marketing Officer of Premier Global Services, “All of us are guilty of multitasking during a meeting. Some of us are better at it than others.” Signs of a multitasker? According to Yeaney, “when asked a question, the Multitasker frequently responds with, “Sorry, I missed that. Could you repeat that?” ·         The Disrupter: Taking a risk by not knowing exactly how a meeting will wind up is half the fun for many people who attend lots and lots of meetings. But there is a downside to the risk as well. Yeaney writes that “Changing the topic or taking people down a side street, the Disrupter can sometimes uncover new thinking or creative ideas. But the Disrupter can also blow up an agenda and make other meeting participants irritable and cranky. You'll know the Disrupter as they often end a sentence with “… but I digress.” ·         The Interrupter: What meeting wouldn’t benefit from a few good ideas? Yes, but, there’s a time and place for every brilliant comment. Yeaney cautions, “When a good idea comes to mind, the Interrupter can't wait to present it to the group. And does … right at that moment! This personality is not inherently bad because hey, it is a GOOD idea. But have caution: combining the Interrupter with distant relatives the Disrupter and the Long-Winded can create meeting anarchy.” Risk Rescue for Derailed Meetings Consider the risk tips below to prevent meetings from going off the rails, or to get them back on track when a familiar personality type gets in the way of your plans for a productive and meaningful conversation. 1.    Keep it Timely – A great technique to keep a meeting on track is to adopt and follow a timed agenda. A timed agenda indicates the estimated time that will be devoted to each key discussion topic. It’s a great tool for the meeting minder (the chair or facilitator), particularly when that person (you know who you are!) has a hard time interrupting the attendee who seems determined to hear her voice from start to finish. 2.    Choose the Chair with Care – Sometimes senior leaders in a nonprofit aren’t the best meeting facilitators. That’s ok. If there are critical topics to discuss, consider choosing the best meeting facilitator, instead of the staff member at the highest pay grade. A great meeting leader knows how to gently move the discussion from topic to topic, how to engage the quiet attendees, and how to respectfully get the disrupters and interrupters to stand down. 3.    Keep a Plan B Close at Hand – Meetings go off the rails for any number of reasons, including sabotage by a participant to “stuff happens.” When you fear your agenda is too skimpy for the time allotted, make sure you have a compelling, meaty topic in mind as an add-on. Always ask the group’s permission before going down the new path. If your concern is that the time may be inadequate, make certain you’ve identified one or two topics that can be postponed until the next time the group meets. Again, ask permission to take those topics off the table out of respect for the published end time for the meeting. 4.    Be Flexible – A common mistake is to try to control the discussion and the outcomes. The truth is that the most rewarding workshops and meetings often bring things to light that had been hiding in the darkness for too long. Facilitators who lead scripted and rehearsed brainstorming sessions quickly lose credibility and respect. “Why are we here?” and “This was a waste of my time!” are sentiments you don’t want to hear in the hallway or read on the meeting evaluation form. The futurists who predicted the demise of in-person meetings and conferences during the Internet age have thus far been proven wrong. Many associations are reporting record attendance at their annual conferences, and we heard over and over again at the Center’s recent risk events that conference and video calls are a poor substitute for face-to-face conversations about controversial and troubling risk topics. Yet even a thoughtful agenda is at risk of spiraling out of control when the usual suspects show up. By considering the risk of a meeting gone wrong before you conduct roll call, you’re in the best possible position to increase the odds that your next meeting, brainstorming session or workshop will be time well spent for all involved. Melanie Herman is Executive Director of the Nonprofit Risk Management Center. Melanie enjoys discussing risk issues against the backdrop of a nonprofit’s mission during custom workshops for Center clients. She welcomes your questions about risk management and the Center’s consulting services and cloud applications. She can be reached at (703) 777-3504 or Melanie@nonprofitrisk.org.	Risk Webinars Fit-to Suit Risk Policies My Risk Management Policies, Version 2.0 helps you create custom risk policies for your organization in a matter of minutes. Need well-written policies? This cloud app makes policy drafting easy. After completing the quick registration process, search by keywords, categories or peruse an alphabetized list of 150 templates. Each template offers many options to consider. Some of the templates force you to make practical choices. For example, you might prefer an informal style over formal language. Or perhaps you want to strictly prohibit something that other nonprofits allow! With My Risk Management Policies, Version 2.0, custom-fitting policy language to suit your nonprofit is easy and dare we say… fun! Version 2.0, What’s New? We’re excited to announce some terrific new features, plus a bold new design. Many of the new features were developed with client feedback in mind. You spoke and we listened! ·         Multiple users, one account — The new version has two levels of users: Account Holder and Added User. This means that two or more staff from one organization can collaborate on the drafting of policies. Want to get your outside counsel involved? No problem! The Account Holder for your nonprofit may grant system access to expert advisors through the “added user” feature. ·         Policy drafting tips — We’ve added policy drafting tips at the top of many templates. This is our chance to offer a few hints from our years of experience drafting and editing risk policies for nonprofits! ·         More policies than ever before — We have added nearly 50 new policy templates and updated many of the templates in the first version, and we’re not stopping there! As always, we welcome your suggestions for new policy types, new policy language, policy options and more. Send your requests to info@nonprofitrisk.org. To begin developing customized Risk Management Policies for your nonprofit, click here. The one-time licensing fee for My Risk Management Policies is only $179 or just $29 if your nonprofit is an Affiliate Member of the Nonprofit Risk Management Center.
Pass it On! If you enjoy reading the Center’s Risk eNews and know others who would as well, please use the Forward email link that appears at the bottom of this issue. The link offers an easy way to share this issue with a colleague. When you use the link your colleague will receive an invitation to subscribe.
© 2014 Nonprofit Risk Management Center

Drafting the Ideal Team: Risk Lessons from the NFL - RISK eNews

April 30, 2014 Drafting the Ideal Team: Risk Lessons from the NFL By Arley Turner Next week is my favorite event of the pro football offseason, the NFL Draft. During the draft, the General Manager of each franchise generally leads the selection of the team’s “draft picks.” Each prospective team member is carefully screened before the GM decides which players will be targeted as new players for the coming season. Every draft pick has the potential to be a star player, a solid contributor, or in some cases, a poor fit. So how do the NFL’s most successful teams choose their draft picks, and what can nonprofit leaders learn from the process? Study the Tapes, But Save Time for Candid Conversations In the NFL, studying tapes of a player’s past performance is the beginning, but never the end of the screening process. In the new film Draft Day, the fictional GM of the Cleveland Browns has an opportunity to choose a Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback. But rather than basing his decision solely on the tapes and trophy, the GM calls other scouts and the quarterback’s college coach to learn more. The time spent talking to people who know a prospective employee is incredibly valuable. Keep in mind that a prospective employee is motivated to tell you what they think you want to hear. References are an opportunity to hear about the prospect’s skills, talents and weaknesses from another source. Don’t be cynical about reference checks! Always allot sufficient time in your screening process to talk to people who truly know your top candidates. Consider Culture and Rhythm Throughout the screening process it’s essential to remember that every new hire needs to fit your culture, and also the rhythm of your nonprofit. In Draft Day, the GM constantly asks prospects what’s most important to them. While some players understandably reply, “winning,” the GM’s clear preference is for players who put family and loyalty over winning ball games. As you design your screening process for key positions, make certain you are screening for culture and rhythm mismatches. Recognize the human tendency to look for information that confirms your initial impressions about a candidate (the confirmation bias), rather than tuning in to information that suggests a mismatch. Get Your Draft Picks on the Field without Delay When asked in 2013 whether he hoped to find immediate starters in the crop of draft picks, Denver Broncos GM John Elway replied, “That's always the goal, to find these guys and get them on the field as fast as we can.” (Source: The Denver Post.) Venture capitalist and author Ben Horowitz echoes this idea in his book, “The Hard Thing About Hard Things.” Horowitz urges leaders to “aggressively integrate” new executives after hire. His tips include: providing monthly, weekly and even daily objectives to help the new hire produce “immediately,” insisting that new leaders get up to speed fast, and providing opportunities for interaction with peers by providing a “list of people they need to know and learn from.” Horowitz is a proponent of a 30-day window for new executives, writing that “If in thirty days you don’t feel that they are coming up to speed, definitely fire them.” Screening and selecting new hires for your mission-focused organization may not seem as glamorous as making draft picks in the NFL. But the consequences are just as vital to the people and communities you serve. By exercising care as you “draft” new team players, you have the best opportunity to fortify your mission for the long term, and add dedicated teammates to your cause. Arley Turner is Project Manager at the Nonprofit Risk Management Center. She welcomes your comments and questions about risk topics, the Center’s Affiliate Member program, the 2014 NFL Draft or the Denver Broncos. Arley can be reached at (202) 785-3891 orArley@nonprofitrisk.org. Affordable, Convenient Risk Management Training Each month the Center records a brand-new Risk Webinar featuring up-to-date content on issues that are top-of-mind for nonprofit leaders. The one-time cost for each program is $59, or apply to become an Affiliate Member to enjoy unlimited access to our “vault” of more than 100 hours of risk management training. Frustrated with the limitations of your annual performance review process? Learn what’s new in the field of performance management by purchasing this month’s program on Managing Risk in Performance Management. Next month’s program, on The Insurance Marketplace will be released on Monday, May 5. To purchase any recorded program or peruse the “webinar vault,” visit our 2014 Webinars page today. New Sessions Added to Upcoming Risk Conferences The conference programs for the Center’s 3 risk-themed conferences are taking shape! We invite you to browse the schedules, workshop descriptions and registration details for each event, by visiting the conference webpage. To suggest a topic for the Risk Summit in Chicago, click here.	Risk Webinars Fit-to Suit Risk Policies My Risk Management Policies, Version 2.0 helps you create custom risk policies for your organization in a matter of minutes. Need well-written policies? This cloud app makes policy drafting easy. After completing the quick registration process, search by keywords, categories or peruse an alphabetized list of 150 templates. Each template offers many options to consider. Some of the templates force you to make practical choices. For example, you might prefer an informal style over formal language. Or perhaps you want to strictly prohibit something that other nonprofits allow! With My Risk Management Policies, Version 2.0, custom-fitting policy language to suit your nonprofit is easy and dare we say… fun! Version 2.0, What’s New? We’re excited to announce some terrific new features, plus a bold new design. Many of the new features were developed with client feedback in mind. You spoke and we listened! Multiple users, one account— The new version has two levels of users: Account Holder and Added User. This means that two or more staff from one organization can collaborate on the drafting of policies. Want to get your outside counsel involved? No problem! The Account Holder for your nonprofit may grant system access to expert advisors through the “added user” feature. Policy drafting tips — We’ve added policy drafting tips at the top of many templates. This is our chance to offer a few hints from our years of experience drafting and editing risk policies for nonprofits! More policies than ever before — We have added nearly 50 new policy templates and updated many of the templates in the first version, and we’re not stopping there! As always, we welcome your suggestions for new policy types, new policy language, policy options and more. Send your requests toinfo@nonprofitrisk.org. To begin developing customized Risk Management Policies for your nonprofit,click here. The one-time licensing fee for My Risk Management Policies is only $179 or just $29 if your nonprofit is an Affiliate Member of the Nonprofit Risk Management Center.
Pass it On! If you enjoy reading the Center’s Risk eNews and know others who would as well, please use the Forward email link that appears at the bottom of this issue. The link offers an easy way to share this issue with a colleague. When you use the link your colleague will receive an invitation to subscribe.
© 2014 Nonprofit Risk Management Center

Leadership is Hard - RISK eNews

A SOURCE for Tools, Advice, and Training to control risks… so you can focus on your nonprofit’s mission.

April 23, 2014 With Thanks The Nonprofit Risk Management Center is deeply grateful to the companies that have signed on as Corporate Sponsors of our 2014 risk-themed conferences. In addition to our Corporate Sustainers, we are pleased to report that USLI and The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. have enrolled as 2014 sponsors. Thank you! Visit our2014 Conferences webpage for location details, conference schedules, and online registration. Contact Kay Nakamura at (202) 785-3891 to discuss partnership opportunities. Leadership is Hard By Melanie Lockwood Herman This week I’ve been reading “The Hard Thing About Hard Things,” by Ben Horowitz, the former CEO of Opsware, whose company was acquired by HP for $1.6 Billion in 2007. What practical advice might a Silicon Valley tech executive turned venture capitalist have to offer nonprofit CEOs and risk champions? Brutal but helpful lessons from the world of startups, dot coms, and life on the fine dividing line between financial success and disaster. Like the corporate CEOs referenced in “The Hard Thing About Hard Things,” most of us leading mission-driven organizations awake each morning believing that we run great organizations. We yearn for opportunities to boast about our compelling missions and how we transform lives and communities. But I think Horowitz is right when he says that the true test of that belief is when the organization—and the CEO—have to do something truly difficult. Here are just a few of the “hard things” I learned from this provocative new book. No Excuses, No Self-Pity – In one of the shortest but most memorable chapters, Horowitz explains that when disaster strikes, “nobody cares.” His advice? Conserve the mental energy needed to rationalize the mess, make excuses for the mess, or engage in self-pity. Use the energy you have to “find the one seemingly impossible way out… Spend zero time on what you could have done, and devote all of your time to what you might do.” Recognize Good from Bad – The opportunity to make a difference is often touted by nonprofit CEOs attempting to lure talented professionals to their organizations. Yet are we being honest about whether our nonprofits—regardless of the warm feelings our mission statements convey—are really good organizations? Horowitz explains that in a good organization, “staff wake up knowing that the work they do will be efficient, effective and make a difference for the organization and themselves. These things will make their organizations both motivating and fulfilling.” In contrast, in a poor organization, “people spend much of their time fighting organizational boundaries, infighting, and on broken processes. They are not even clear on what their jobs are, so there is no way to know if they are getting the job done or not.” Which characterization fits the nonprofit you lead? If you’re not 100% confident that the “good organization” label applies, what steps are you taking to dispense with mission-wasting processes and eliminate the confusion and chaos you need to evolve to good? Take a Hard Look at the Numbers and the White Space – Today’s nonprofit CEOs are becoming increasingly obsessed with numbers. I recall a board meeting more than 10 years ago when one of my business-savvy board members urged our team to conduct an annual “ROI” process. Her suggestion, which seemed novel in 2004, is not an uncommon theme at today’s board table. But Horowitz cautions against focusing on the wrong numbers or looking at them in the wrong way. He describes “management by numbers” as “sort of like paint by numbers—it’s strictly for amateurs.” The frequent mistake that leaders make is to focus on short-term results while sacrificing future opportunities, or “downstream competitiveness.” He urges CEOs to look beyond the black box with the numbers to the intriguing “white space” that explains how the organization achieved those numbers. He reminds his readers that in many cases, qualitative goals may be an organization’s most important ones. Invite Candid Feedback Through One-on-Ones – According to Ben Horowitz, a common mistake made by tech CEOs is to engage in one-way conversations with staff. Whether it’s a performance review, pep talk, or opportunity to make a big announcement, apparently many CEOs prefer to hear the sound of their own voices to hearing feedback from direct reports and the rank and file! Horowitz challenges CEOs to make time for one-on-one conversations with staff. During these one-on-ones, the most important rule is the 90:10 rule: CEOs should do no more than 10% of the talking. Questions to help spark the conversation include: If we could improve in any way, how would we do it? What’s the number one problem with our organization? Why? What’s not fun about working here? What are we not doing that we should be doing? Share Every Burden You Can – Horowitz writes that “It’s easy to think that the things that bother you will upset your people more. That’s not true. The opposite is true. Nobody takes the losses harder than the person most responsible.” The author’s antidote to lonely despair when things go terribly wrong? “Share every burden you can. Get the maximum number of brains on the problems even if the problems represent existential threats.” Leaders of nonprofit organizations are fortunate that our missions attract smart and passionate staff and volunteers. It’s been years since I’ve heard any CEO complain about having a hard time recruiting top notch staff and brilliant board leaders. With the opportunity to work with and tap the enthusiasm, creativity and dedication of bright people, our missions know no bounds. But despite the talent at our doorsteps, leading a nonprofit requires making hard choices, choosing between sometimes painful alternatives, and never giving up or giving in when the going gets tough. You can reach out for help, look for opportunity in the face of disaster, but you can’t hide. Why? Because your mission deserves your commitment and fortitude to handle the “hard things” that are inevitable in the extraordinary world of nonprofit service. Melanie Lockwood Herman is Executive Director at the Nonprofit Risk Management Center. Melanie’s calendar of upcoming speaking engagements is available online. Also available are “hot topics” for workshops in 2014. Questions? Call Kay Nakamura at (202) 785-3891 to discuss Melanie’s availability as a keynote or workshop speaker. Suit Yourself Risk Management Training Each month the Center records a brand-new Risk Webinar featuring up-to-date content on issues that are top-of-mind for nonprofit leaders. The one-time cost for each program is $59, or apply to become an Affiliate Member to enjoy unlimited access to our “vault” of more than 100 hours of risk management training. Frustrated with the limitations of your annual performance review process? Learn what’s new in the field of performance management by purchasing this month’s program on Managing Risk in Performance Management. Next month’s program, on The Insurance Marketplace will be released on May 5. To purchase any recorded program or peruse the “webinar vault,” visit our 2014 Webinars page today.

eNews:Keep yourself busy through winter

January 2014

What a month! January has flown by for us at Idealware, as we're sure it has for many of you, while winter, on the other hand, seems like it's been here forever. We're inching closer to spring with every passing day, but for much of the country, there's still plenty of winter to be had. Since Idealware is based in Maine, we get winter, and wanted to throw together a number of good resources to help you pass those days until warmer weather and clearer skies return. 

We'd also like to ask a favor. We recently sent out our 2014 Community Survey, which closes tomorrow, January 31. If you haven't completed it yet, we'd love it if you would. It should only take five minutes of your time, but it will tell us more about what you think of our reports, trainings, emails, or any of the other ways we interact with you and help us to serve you better. You can take the survey here.

Last week we kicked off our first course of the year, From Audit to Redesign: The Complete Nonprofit Website Toolkit. This five- session class is spread out over 10 weeks, and covers all the high-priority issues you face when considering a website redesign. Though the class is under way, there's still time to sign up. As with all of our webinars, every session is recorded, so you can catch up and review at your own pace. Not your cup of tea? We've got six more intensive courses planned out between now and July that might be more to your taste, starting with The Social Media Policy Toolkit right around the corner.

Earlier this week, we released our newest report, a look at how every day nonprofits in the human services field are evaluating their programs. The report is the result of a survey of our constituents and site visits to several local organizations here in Portland, Maine. The results were fascinating, and shed some light on the often misunderstood topic of nonprofit impact-measurement. Download it here for free.

To cap things off, we recently updated an article on phone systems, are hosting a 90-minute class on boosting your social media engagement, and have a whole lot more for you to pass those chilly days. Read on to see what we've got in store.

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Reports and Articles

The Reality of Measuring Human Service Programs: Results of a SurveyThe public conversation about measuring programs is often theoretical, focusing on what organizations could or should do rather than on tactics for success. At Idealware, we were curious about the opposite—what specific tactics are organizations using to measure their programs? What are the barriers? To find out, we created and distributed a survey to human service organizations on our own mailing list—generally small to mid-sized organizations—to learn how they were actually using technology to measure and evaluate the outcomes of their programs. 

To augment survey results, we selected three organizations local to Idealware for site visits and interviews with them to understand their strategies for measuring programs.
Download the Free Report>>>

Phones on a Shoestring BudgetNewly updated for 2014. If your organization is considering a new phone system, should you go with traditional service or Voice over IP (VoIP)—and what does VoIP even mean in this context? Should you buy hardware to manage multiple phone lines, or one of the growing number of other software-based solutions? 

We talked to a number of nonprofit IT specialists about the best choices for affordable, reliable phone systems and compiled the information and recommendations they shared in this article to help you decide.
Read the Free Article>>>

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Training 

The Social Media Policy ToolkitWednesdays, 02/19 - 03/05 1:00-2:00 PM (ET)
As social media transparency and two-way conversations become the norm, many nonprofits are racing to develop social media policies that govern who does what, what's OK (and not OK) to say on behalf of the organization, and how to handle sticky situations. But even more than legislating these details, the process of creating such a policy can help you and other leaders in your organization engage in important discussions that will mature your organizational culture and better position you to take advantage of the tools and opportunities at your disposal.

In this new course based on our popular Nonprofit Social Media Policy Workbook, we'll explore why the process is as important as the product, how to make these conversations productive and strategic (and maybe even fun), and why a social media policy is an important milestone of digital maturity. We’ll also spend an entire hour on each of the following topics: responding to comments (especially negative ones), your social media values, and personal voice vs. professional voice. Throughout this course, we’ll rely heavily on conversations and examples to help you see the results of creating your own social media policy.
Read more or register >>>

Getting Beyond the Like: Social Media Engagement
Thursday, 02/20 1:00-2:30 PM (ET)
People “like” you, but what is that actually doing to support your organization’s bottom line? We’ll talk critically about how you can move constituents up a ladder of engagement from a simple “like” to actually get them to do something for your organization. Sign a petition, attend an event, join a movement and yes, even donate—it’s possible to get your constituents to do all of these things as a result of social media actions, but it’s not easy. Armed with case studies, industry research and plain old common sense and experience, we’ll work together to recalibrate your social media mindset in order to provide more value and cultivate a deeper commitment.
Read more or register >>>

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On the Horizon

Just because we've had a busy January doesn’t mean we don’t have a busy February, March, April, and May planned out. For starters, as soon as our Social Media Policy Toolkit wraps up, our next course,Mastering Your Mix: A Practical Approach to Integrated Communications, begins. Based on our popular workbook, this course will help bring some of those conceptual ideas into reality for your own organization. Not only will we walk you through the process of integrating your communications, but you’ll have personalized guidance from one of the workbook’s lead authors.

Outside of the training realm, we are putting the finishing touches on a brand new report that looks at the landscape of apps for the Salesforce.com platform. This report will break down the full, complicated app marketplace to what is most valuable to nonprofits. Co-written by the same team that brought you the Consumers Guide to Donor Management Systems, and featuring the same accessible guidance, it won’t be much longer until you have your own roadmap to meeting your needs by building on top of Salesforce.com. We're also including a directory of consultants who specialize in Salesforce.com for the critical step of implementation. And our latest-and-greatest update to the Field Guide to Software for Nonprofits is under way, with a publication date of early spring. 

As always, be sure to keep an eye on our Twitter, Facebook, andblog to keep tabs on what's going on at Idealware. Things move fast around here, and we want to make sure you get the resources you need right away. Stay warm.

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