Resources
It’s OK to Laugh About Risk Management. Really.
By Melanie Lockwood Herman While prepping for an upcoming speaking engagement, my point of contact warned me: “Don’t be surprised if members of the audience share humorous anecdotes and comments when you invite their participation.” This news was a great relief! Before walking up to the podium at a conference, I often worry that my … Continued
Eliminate Excess to Nourish Your Risk Management Function
by Melanie Lockwood Herman In his book, From Strength to Strength, Arthur Brooks writes that “As we grow older in the West, we generally think we should have a lot to show for our lives—a lot of trophies. According to more Eastern thinking, this is backward. As we age, we shouldn’t accumulate more to represent … Continued
Keep Calm and Carry on Embracing Possibilities
“Possibilities are always more interesting than facts. We shouldn’t frown on fact, but our world is congested with them. But for every fact that becomes a fact, there are seven, eight, maybe five hundred possibilities hanging around in the background that didn’t make it in to the place where they could be elected and realised … Continued
Fortify Your Pillars of Resilience
by Melanie Lockwood Herman In his chapter on “Resilient, Net Positive Leadership” featured in the book Certain Uncertainty, Andrew Winston questions the wisdom of an economy that “values efficiency above all.” Winston explains that while obsessive efficiency “certainly keeps costs down… it’s completely unfit for a vulnerable world.” Nonprofits across the diverse charitable sector around … Continued
The Tension Crushing the Soul of Risk Management
By Melanie Lockwood Herman The risk professionals with whom I have the pleasure of working are bright stars in the nonprofit universe. Without exception, the dedicated risk champions we meet—in consulting engagements, at the Risk Summit, and in our Affiliate Member orbit—seek to contribute to the success of the missions and strategic priorities of their … Continued
Into the Deep: Your Six-Week Risk Challenge (It’s Not About Carbs)
By Melanie Lockwood Herman Collecting data (what keeps you up at night?), sorting data (let’s sort these risks by likelihood and impact scores), and promising protection (here’s a list of all the things we’re doing to mitigate our risks) are famously familiar tasks in risk management. If you include the time asking, pleading and reminding … Continued
You’re Not Alone: How to Meet Your Fellow ‘Risk People’
By Rachel Sams Being a nonprofit risk professional can be a lonely job. Maybe you manage a team, but the risk department doesn’t seem fully integrated into operations at your nonprofit. Maybe you’re a “department of one.” Or maybe risk management isn’t even part of your job duties — just a gap you’ve seen at … Continued
6 Signs You Might Need to Hire a Full-Time Risk Manager
by Rachel Sams Wondering if your organization needs to hire someone to handle risk management full-time? Every nonprofit, and every risk management journey, is different. We can’t offer you a magic formula that will tell you whether you need to hire a risk manager, but we can definitely tell you what factors to weigh as … Continued
If You’re Not Confused, Try Harder
By Melanie Lockwood Herman An NRMC Risk Assessment or ERM engagement typically centers on one-on-one conversations with individuals from our nonprofit clients. Conversations spark ideas, reveal challenges, and help us understand complex nonprofits through a variety of unique lenses. We’re eager to speak to newbies, veterans, optimists, worriers, dreamers, and everyone in between. Notes from … Continued
How To Take More Risks In Your Leadership
By Rachel Sams When I led a newsroom, I learned from staff feedback that my team wanted more support from me. Our news organization had a lot of change initiatives. I spent time with my bosses to understand what changes were coming and plan how the newsroom could cover them. I worked to protect my … Continued
Risk Leadership Life Hacks
by Melanie Lockwood Herman A Google search for the term “life hacks” returns 318 million results. That’s a lot of advice on efficiency whirling around the web! These days, everyone is interested in how to do things better, maximize precious time and resources, and bolster personal and professional efficiency. I recently listened as a leader … Continued
You’re Focused on the Wrong Thing Right Now
by Melanie Lockwood Herman Do you frequently struggle to focus on one topic, task, or conversation? Do you sometimes ‘zone out’ during meetings or conversations by checking email? Do you wonder whether colleagues can tell you’re multitasking when you should be paying attention? Have you experienced serious consequences of your failure to focus? (missed appointments, … Continued
Risk Roles in a Nonprofit
By Whitney Claire Thomey Evolution of risk management programs happens in many ways. However, expansion usually involves infusing risk awareness into decision-making and routine activities. Doing so often requires the thoughtful consideration of how new risk-related activities will be dispersed among the team. During the past year, we’ve been asked by several organizations to weigh … Continued
Reimagine Your Risk Roundtable
By Melanie Lockwood Herman During NRMC consulting engagements and conversations with our Affiliate Members, our team often hears about the work and deliberations of risk teams. During the Virtual Risk Summit, I was delighted to join my colleague Ann Terlizzi, Director of Risk Management at Lutheran Social Service of Minnesota, for a fast-paced session we … Continued
Everything I Know About Risk Management I Learned by Teaching Risk Management
By Melanie Lockwood Herman “Whenever we want a far-reaching impact, teaching others to teach can be a high-leverage strategy.” I’ve just finished reading Effortless by Greg McKeown. In Chapter 12, “Lift,” I was struck by a subhead that reads, “When You Learn to Teach, You Teach Yourself to Learn.” McKeown goes on to explain … Continued