2024 Risk Summit

Below is an overview of the conference schedule. Session details will be announced in the weeks and months to come.

Monday, October 21

7:30 – 8:15 am: Breakfast, Registration and Networking with Conference Sponsors

8:30 – 9:30 am: Opening Plenary Session

9:45 – 11:00 am: Concurrent Workshops

P&C Insurance for Nonprofits: Back to Basics
Private collectors and curators can never predict when disaster might strike their collection – theft, damage due to fire or water, or vandalism. Just as art galleries insure their collections, nonprofits must consider the possible consequences of damage to or destruction of assets, as well as the ever-present risk of lawsuits alleging wrongdoing. Insurance is an option for financing risk but many leaders have nagging questions and concerns about the types and limits of coverage they need and what their policies actually cover. Join a panel of experienced guides through a tour of coverage inspired by an actual scenario.

How to Design a Risk Assessment Survey and Lead a Risk Identification Exercise Found a mysterious painting in the attic? Or maybe there’s some folklore that the picture hanging in the hallway is an unsigned Remington. Your organization’s risks might be a lot like all the unknown works of art – they need some research before they’re truly understood. Join this session to learn more about designing an effective survey to glean information and identify risks from a broad group of people at your nonprofit. You’ll learn how to ask the right questions, collate responses, and identify those top risks that matter most to your mission.

Data Privacy Governance
Art galleries and museums prioritize what art to build their collections with. Ideally, their collections help tell a story, illustrate a genre, or answer questions. Nonprofits often collect data from members, clients, and community members for the same purposes. Just as art galleries and museums should choose which pieces will best contribute to their collections, nonprofits must also decide which data is necessary. Join this session if you are interested in learning more about data privacy practices and principles that will help you prioritize and protect data that has been entrusted to your organization. Attendees will learn the pros and cons of opt-in consent vs data minimization and purpose limitations, uncovering how to choose policies that best suit your needs, your constituents’ rights, and your mission.

11:15 am – 12:15 pm: Concurrent Workshops

Workplace Safety: Back to Basics
A beautiful art installation in a museum doesn’t hint at the dangers that could lurk in the corner of an artist’s studio. Yet, most artists are aware how their mediums affect health and safety, those that aren’t pay the price. In this session, attendees will learn common sense approaches to managing workplace safety, tools, and resources for teaching safety awareness for teams, and how to select and use proper safety equipment. It’s never a waste of time or a hindrance to creativity to protect your teams while they immerse themselves in your nonprofit’s mission.

Perfectly Human: Only You Can Manage Artificial Intelligence Risk
Generative AI models can create new “masterpieces” in the style of Rembrandt, Picasso, and Dali all in the blink of an eye. Many observers are wondering what constitutes “art” in this new world. Others worry about the growing difficulty of distinguishing between reality and virtual reality. Nonprofit leaders are curious and cautious about the uses of artificial intelligence and the risks that this technology poses for their organizations. Workshop attendees will explore how to weigh risks and rewards that AI might have for their missions, operations, and reputations.

From Sketch to Masterpiece: How Build or Reimagine a Risk Function from Scratch
Whether you’re a beginning artist or a master, your work starts with a rough idea, a spark, an unfinished design. The Mona Lisa began with a sketch. From the rough lines a masterpiece can emerge. In this session, attendees will learn how to examine organizational culture for inspiration in building a brand-new risk function. You will learn how to adapt initial ideas, iterate, and refine processes to design your nonprofit’s risk management program to evolve and grow with your mission.

12:30 – 1:30 pm: Conference Luncheon

1:45 – 2:45 pm: Concurrent Workshops

Light and Shadow: Employee Health and Wellness Risk
It’s inevitable in every organization that some employees will experience disengagement or discontent for a variety of reasons. Leadership can sometimes even see these shadows creeping in. When painting, an artist must know how to apply light to overcome (or utilize) the shadows to make a successful, impactful image. In this session, nonprofit leaders will learn how to create positive employee health and wellness practices to minimize dissatisfaction and infuse their teams with light. Techniques like employee surveys and trend monitoring are useful ways to measure and understand where leaders should shine more light and give additional attention.

A Solo Art Show: How to Lead a Risk Function as a Department of One
Artists who produce solo art shows are stretched to their limits. They are responsible for the creation, planning, curation, and promotion of an entire gallery of work. Nonprofit risk leadership isn’t dissimilar. Often risk leadership is a department of one, with the expectation that an organization’s risk leader designs or refines the risk program, effectively communicates the programs goals and strategies, and unifies risk actions both up and down the organizational hierarchy. This session presents practical tips on how to engage with team members and leadership at all levels, create effective risk communications, and harness risk champions throughout the organization to turn a department of one into a successful risk-aware enterprise.

Insurance Industry Leaders Panel: Evolving from Munch’s “The Scream” to Van Gogh’s “The Starry Night”
Join a panel session featuring experienced insurance sector leaders whose companies have deep experience insuring nonprofits. The panel will discuss topics ranging from a forecast of future volatility in the coverage of abuse claims, the impact of unprecedented auto claims verdicts, and the real risks to nonprofits stemming from trends in carrier profitability. Learn what carriers hope to see in their nonprofit policyholders with regard to risk management investments, and how the offerings of dominant markets are likely to change and evolve in the years ahead.

3:00 – 4:00 pm: Concurrent Workshops

A Cubist’s Perspective: How to Use and Adapt a Risk Bow Tie Exercise to “Unpack” Troubling Risks

At first glance, a cubist painting looks like a confusing array of blocks. This explanation gets at the crux of what cubists wanted to achieve with their art, “Their aim was to show things as they really are, not just to show what they look like. They felt that they could give the viewer a more accurate understanding of an object, landscape or person by showing it from different angles or viewpoints, so they used flat geometric shapes to represent the different sides and angles of the objects.” In the same way, the Risk Bow Tie exercise helps nonprofit teams better understand risks from a variety of perspectives, fully examining the causes, effects, controls, and reactions to a particular risk. In this session learn how to take this simple effective tool and unpack real world risks and adapt the exercise to best suit your organization’s mission.

Risk Appetite: How to Balance Wants and Needs
As a nonprofit risk leader, you may be intimately familiar with your organization’s “tastes” when it comes to risk. A well-defined risk appetite ensures that decision-makers are on the same page with the amount of risk the organization is willing to take to advance the mission. International funders are increasingly asking grant seekers to provide evidence that they are managing risk and defining risk appetite. This workshop explores how to create a risk appetite statement or framework that will satisfy funders and regulatory bodies, while also creating a tool that will help decision-makers align their actions with the nonprofit’s defined appetite for risk.

Art Handlers and Safe Delivery of Collections: Your Nonprofit’s Duty of Care
When collections are on the move, a team of subject matter experts are called in to ensure the safe delivery of each piece to its new gallery. They pack art safely, make arrangements for shipping and delivery, and may even be present for physical delivery of the pieces. Your nonprofit’s Duty of Care is its Art Handler – safely delivering your staff to provide for your mission. It’s a top priority to keep your nonprofit team safe when they’re conducting important mission work. Your Duty of Care policy is your organization’s statement on how this will happen. But insurance, security policies, and travel services create a confusing web making it difficult for staff and security leaders to understand how everything works together. In this session, attendees will explore what insurances may apply and when and how to contact your representatives. You’ll also learn how travel assistance providers like iSOS and Global Guardian interplay with insurance. Finally, you’ll get real-world examples of coverage gap reports, travel planning responses, and documents ready to be shared with your board and executive team to educate and prepare staff for potential travel risks.

4:15 – 5:30 pm: Concurrent Topic-Based Roundtables (3 rounds, 20-minutes each)

• Risk Lessons from Stand-up Comedy
• Insurance Lessons from Star Wars
• How to Attract and Support Neurodivergent Staff
• How to Inspire a Positive Risk Management Culture
• How to Conduct a Cyber Incident Simulations
• Artful Errors: How to Truly Learn from Mistakes
• Black and Grey: How to ID and Act on Black and Grey Swans
• Ask the ERM Expert
• Ask the Insurance Maestro
• What You Need to Know about the Changing Insurance Marketplace to Maximize Value in Your Insurance Portfolio
• Wire Fraud Risk Prevention: What You Need to Know
• Overseas Call Centers in the Insurance Industry: 
  Join this conversation to learn why and how insurers are outsourcing claims and support functions. Participants will get to engage in a lively discussion of what you need to know as a policyholder and how you can make these calls go more smoothly.
• Self-Portraits: How to Spot Your Leadership Challenges: A self-portrait might be an expression of how you wish others saw you, how you think people see you, or how you actually Join this conversation to learn how to look in the mirror and uncover and illustrate the strengths and challenges in your leadership.
• Change Management: Change is a part of every nonprofit and teams are struggling with how to cope as the feel it from every angle as the pace continues to accelerate. Join this discussion to learn how to navigate change in pursuit of improving services to your community and clients.
• Facilities Risks Do’s and Don’ts
• Stop the Wave: Make a Plan to Mitigate Disruptive Water Damage
• ESG: Environmental, Social & Corporate Governance (ESG) is a framework that helps stakeholders understand how an organization is managing non-financial risks and opportunities across three broad categories: environmental, social and governance. What’s driving ESG’s momentum? Come to this roundtable, and let’s chat about your organization’s approach and response to ESG.
• Climate Change: From catastrophic wildfires and droughts to damaging hailstorms, climate change is causing more frequent and more severe losses. It is not just about physical property; there are risks and mitigation strategies for disruption to work locations, injuries caused by evacuations, autos in harm’s way, regulatory changes, supply chain concerns, and economic volatility. Is this a conversation happening in your organization? Join this roundtable and chat about how climate change is evolving risks for your organization.
• Memorable Risk Policies and Procedures: 5 Tips
• Strategic Risk Management + Innovation

5:30 – 7:00 pm: Conference Reception

Tuesday, October 22

7:00 – 8:00 am: Breakfast, Registration, and Networking with Conference Sponsors

8:00 – 9:00 am: Peer Networking Roundtables (risk professionals, finance leaders, in-house counsel/General Counsel, and insurance professionals)

9:15 – 10:30 am: Concurrent Workshops

Creative Sparks: How to Think Beyond Formulas and Frameworks
Highly successful artists know how to infuse creativity into the rules of design to turn a nice picture into a work of art. Nonprofit risk leaders and champions often use frameworks as a foundation or starting point in building out an organization’s risk program. However, overly formulaic risk frameworks rarely inspire action or sync seamlessly with ambitious missions. In this session, attendees will learn how to add sparks of creativity to customize and invigorate risk frameworks, including elements such as risk identification, action planning, and reporting. Participants will leave this session with new ideas for adding color and artistry to basic frameworks.

Mixed Media: How Political & Brand Marketing Campaign Strategies Can Help You Win Support for Risk

Mixed media is a versatile art form that brings together different types of art – layering a collage with textures, integrating digital art with oils, and using three-dimensional sculptures to enhance photography and sketches. It can be more impactful since it appeals to wider audiences and incorporates engaging elements from each style. Building internal support for risk management is hard, especially when you are not working inside a top-down hierarchy, but rather within a consensus-driven community of leaders focused more on impact than profit or productivity. Creative tactics borrowed from other disciplines can be powerful tools to win support for your risk goals and objectives. If you are struggling to win support for risk management inside your organization, these creative tactics may provide you with some new approaches that will make the difference.

Cyber Insurance: Pricing and Underwriting Trends as Threats Escalate

Cybersecurity is an ongoing challenge for all nonprofits. As the threat landscape evolves and artificial intelligence opens up new risks for nonprofits, leaders might be curious about how the cyber insurance market is responding to the changing cyber risk environment. Join this session to learn about key challenges in the cyber market, how coverages have evolved over time, and what underwriters are considering when setting premiums, limits, deductibles, and other relevant policy terms and conditions. You’ll also learn practical tips on how to stress test your cyber readiness and insurability.

10:45 am – 12:00 pm: Concurrent Workshops

Risk Lessons from Stand Up Comedy

How to Read a Commercial Insurance Policy
Trying to read your commercial insurance policy might feel a bit like staring at a piece of abstract art and trying to suss out the artist’s intention. However, vastly different than the many possible interpretations of a Rothko, your organization’s commercial insurance policy can’t be read differently to suit a mood or a situation. Join this session to learn more about how to know which sections typically cross-reference each other and where to find key components, exclusions, and definitions. Attendees will come away feeling confident about reading their commercial policies rather than feeling lost in one of Pollock’s abstract expressionism works.

Art History: ERM Master Class
Art is a constant evolution. From primitive cave paintings to Renaissance masterpieces, humans have been expressing their joys, sorrows, and understanding of their environs since the dawn of time. Many artists draw inspiration from the works of the artists who have preceded them. Attendees in this year’s ERM Master Class will have an opportunity to be inspired and challenged by experienced ERM leaders in three very different nonprofits. Attend this session to learn about the beautiful spectrum of approaches to ERM. Just as there is no form of artistic expression that is pleasing to all audiences, ERM approaches must be custom-crafted to suit a nonprofit’s mission, structure, goals, and culture.

12:00 – 1:00 pm: Conference Luncheon

1:15 – 2:30 pm: Concurrent Workshops

Violence Prevention and the Art of Conflict De-Escalation
The creation of a work of art is part natural ability and gut intuition, part applying rules of design, and part studying other masterpieces. Artists strike a balance of all these techniques. Nonprofit leaders and risk champions who are interested in learning more about violence prevention and conflict de-escalation can learn similar techniques to bring together a variety of skills to successfully manage tricky situations. In this session, you’ll learn basic conflict resolution steps to keep the pressure down on volatile situations. You’ll also explore how de-escalation can be a true art form, understanding how to read the nuances of the situation to apply the best tactics for calming anxious clients, community members, and colleagues.

Happy Tree University: How to Lead a Risk Action Planning Workshop
For over a decade viewers could tune in to PBS and follow along with Bob Ross as he quietly, calmly, and confidently coached them through a painting. No cloud or tree leaning the wrong way was ever a mistake, only a “happy accident.” Ross’s leadership inspired countless beginning artists through calm instruction, creative support, and a focus on foundational basics. In this workshop, attendees will learn how to harness Bob Ross’s quiet confident leadership to shepherd a team through a risk action planning exercise. Get tips on the best way to spark and support innovative solutions to unpacked risks, build an inclusive safe environment for experimentation, and guide teams to lean in to risk management actions that leverage opportunities and build resilience in the face of downside threats.

Risk Appetite: How to Balance Wants and Needs

As a nonprofit risk leader, you may be intimately familiar with your organization’s “tastes” when it comes to risk. A well-defined risk appetite ensures that decision-makers are on the same page with the amount of risk the organization is willing to take to advance the mission. International funders are increasingly asking grant seekers to provide evidence that they are managing risk and defining risk appetite. This workshop explores how to create a risk appetite statement or framework that will satisfy funders and regulatory bodies, while also creating a tool that will help decision-makers align their actions with the nonprofit’s defined appetite for risk.

2:45 – 4:00 pm: Concurrent Workshops

Crisis Management
Crisis events are highly impactful to nonprofits; effects are often felt in multiple areas of an organization, such as financial, operational, reputational, and even mortal. These high-profile events seem to be on the rise, causing nonprofit leaders to take note of their organization’s Crisis Management Plan, or lack of one! This session addresses what organizational leaders should consider when crafting their Crisis Management Plans, how insurance policies respond, and what else is available in the insurance marketplace to boost capabilities and expertise to your organization if or when the need arises.

En Plein Air: Master 8 Critical Cyber Security Risk Management Controls
The best landscape painters have to leave the four walls of their studio behind and experience painting and sketching “in the open air.” By immersing themselves in the landscape they are better equipped to notice where shadows darken the corners of valleys and where the sunlight bathes the trees and meadows. Nonprofit leaders need to widen their perspective to make sure their nonprofits are resilient in a growing cyber threat landscape. In this session, explore proactive controls that are key to a holistic cyber risk defense. Learn ways to remain vigilant in the identification of cyber threats and appreciate how controls help you prepare to respond to a cyber incident. Develop a checklist of essentials to cover the bases.

The Golden Ratio: How to Balancing Assurance + Awareness in Board Risk Reports
The golden ratio is art’s “magic” formula that produces instantly pleasing images, immediately drawing the viewer in with fascination. Painters, sculptors, artists, poets, and yes, risk managers are striving for a harmonious balance to present their works. Nonprofit leaders are looking for just this formula to present risk reports to their boards. In this session learn how to create risk reports that are proportioned with assurance that the organization is managing risks and awareness of opportunities and challenges on the horizon that will leave the Board excited for more.

 

4:00 pm:  2024 Risk Summit concludes