Risk Management
How do we prepare our organizations for the future? How do we face threats to our ability to deliver on our mission.
Risk management is "running a nonprofit as best you can so that it may fulfill its mission to the fullest in an uncertain future." - M.L. Herman
A nonprofit can't fulfill its mission without taking risks. Risk management is developing a discipline for dealing with uncertainty and processes that help you identify, assess, manage, and even leverage risks. Check out the short video about risk management below.
Effective risk management is readily within the grasp of any nonprofit, large or small. Our educational resources and tools will help you think critically and proactively about risk and build a collaborative culture around risk management within your organization.
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Video: What is Risk Management for Nonprofits? (1:29)
Risk Management Toolkit
IntegralOrg's Risk Management Toolkit is a free-to-use resource that helps your nonprofit assess its capacity to manage risk.
Through a series of quizzes, you assess your organization's capacity to manage Staff & Volunteer Risk; Financial & Funding Risk; External & Reputation Risk; Operational & Program Risk; Governance Risk; Legal & Compliance Risk; and Strategic Risk.
A dashboard supports the risk management champions in your organization to track and monitor the development of best practices and proactive strategies within major categories of risk.
In addition to the questions and results, the toolkit contains definitions of key terms and legislation, as well as recommendations and resources that will help your organization continue its risk management journey.
Get Help with Risk Management
IntegralOrg has a range of custom services that can help your nonprofit develop effective risk managment.
Free Consultation or Legal Clinic
Consultation: If you have a question about risk management, we are happy to offer our expertise through a free phone consultation.
To arrange a consultation, give us a call at 403-910-7279, connect by email, or use the Contact Us form and we will arrange a phone or virtual meeting with a member of our team.
Organizational Development Services
Risk Management Training
Risk Management training can be customized in length and format to fit your preferences and tailored to your organization’s unique circumstances. Depending on your needs, the training can focus on general approaches to risk management or strategic risk, governance risk, cyber risk - or a combination of all of these. Training can be tailored for your board or for your staff/volunteer team.
Upcoming Events
We are in the process of putting together our summer and fall workshop offerings. More information about upcoming workshops we be available here soon.
Strategic Risk Management for Nonprofits
Check back for Fall 2023 dates
Is your organization prepared to take strategic risks to advance its mission?
The landscape that nonprofit organizations operate within has changed dramatically over the past three years. Among the many lessons that we have learned is that a vital mission and dedicated staff are not enough to insulate organizations from risk.
Strategic risk management requires thinking about a wide range of future possibilities and being willing to take risks for the good of those you serve in the face of an unknown future. These risks are not managed by rules and policies, but through approaches designed to assess and reduce the probability of negative impacts and leverage opportunities for positive outcomes.
Strategic risks include:
- Leveraging opportunities to advance your mission
- Operating without clearly defined strategic priorities
- Not examining assumptions underlying strategic decisions
- Not tailoring services based on current and future community needs
- Not attending to external trends and how they might affect your organization's operation or funding
Cost: $50 (or two tickets for $80.)
Here's a short video about strategic risk with instructor Leslie Tamagi explaining what it is and why it is important for nonprofits to focus on.
Video: What is Strategic Risk for Nonprofits? (1:51) A short video about strategic risk with instructor Leslie Tamagi explaining what it is and why it is important for nonprofits to focus on.
Leslie Tamagi has more than 25 years experience as CEO of diverse organizations and understands firsthand the complex challenges facing management, staff, and boards in the nonprofit sector. In 2007, she received a Muttart Foundation Fellowship to study risk management in the sector. For more than a decade she has worked with nonprofit organizations, providing training and supporting them through their risk management journeys.
IntegralOrg President and CEO, Mike Grogan, has worked in the nonprofit sector for over 25 years and is recognized for his ability to inspire nonprofit organizations to tackle complex issues and create sustainable solutions to organizational and community issues. Mike’s passion is helping organizations understand the ever-evolving ecosystem and working with organizational teams to build capacities to respond and adapt to a changing environment.
Learn about Risk Management
INTRO to Risk Management: Building resilience for nonprofit organizations
Risk management allows us to ask the question of whether we are taking the most appropriate risks to effectively and responsibly serve our communities.
You’ll come away inspired by what a risk-aware culture could look like at your nonprofit, with a deeper understanding of how to plan proactively for both the threats facing your organization day-to-day and the opportunities on your horizon that require bold but risk-informed decision-making. As we emerge from a turbulent chapter, we will explore the lessons we take forward in addressing the top risks facing nonprofits in 2023. Watch the video.
Risk Management Workshops
IntegralOrg offers workshops on risk management and other topics important to nonprofits including INTEGRALIntro introductory workshops.
Resources
The Board Development Program: Alberta-based resources for nonprofit governance.
Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada: A wide range of high quality and up-to-date resources on nonprofit finance, governance, and human resources.
BoardSource: Provides leaders with an extensive range of tools, resources, and research data to increase board effectiveness and strengthen organizational impact. An American resource.
Blogs
Rethinking risk management: Lessons learned and a need for a new approach
My risk management planning experience: Some roadblocks
Take time to hope for the best but prepare for the worst: Top risks facing nonprofits in 2021
Lessons in financial risk management: Risky tales from a retired nonprofit auditor